Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The music inside Dark Star Bar was usually not to her taste, nor was the crowd usually to her liking, but sometimes, bad situations called for stepping outside of one’s comfort zone. Especially when one’s comfort zone was rapidly becoming diminished.

With a heavy sigh, Caitlyn tapped her finger on the bar next to her now-empty glass. The Turian Bartender glanced at her and, without a single need for clarification, began the process of making another Full Biotic Kick.

“Rough day, Officer Kirramman?”

Caitlyn flushed. While she was currently in her civilian clothing, the Dark Star Bar had been part of her beat when she was a probationary officer. She’d pulled many a drunk individual off the landing. The Dark Star staff absolutely knew her.

“If by ‘Officer Kirramman’ you mean ‘recently-benched-probably-discharged-from-C-Sec-disgraced-officer Kirramman, then yes. It’s been a rough day.”

The Turian’s mandibles flexed in a grimace.

“I thought that C-Sec would have a higher tolerance for any mistakes you’d make, given your military background. Turians usually value those skills.”

Caitlyn scoffed, reaching for her recently refilled glass.

“You’d be surprised what Pallin won’t overlook when humans are involved…”

She sipped her drink, pausing to nod a compliment of thanks before continuing.

“Turns out, it doesn’t matter how much evidence you can turn over against illegal activities if you do so by bending a few rules.” She paused, looking down slightly in shame. “Especially when the accused turns out to be related to some Turian Diplomat. And then you tell Pallin exactly how you feel about the intricacies of said political relationship.”

The Turian chuckled slightly, reaching for a glass to polish.

“Yeah that would do it for Pallin.” Caitlyn had to admit; this Turian was a perfect bartender. “This one’s on me, Kirramman. Might be the last time you get to drink something good.”

He shot her a sideways glance, a twinkle of mirth in his eyes and continued.

“I mean, shouldn’t disgraced C-Sec Officers go to Chora’s Den?”

Despite her low mood, Caitlyn barked out a laugh.

“Good one. Hopefully they don’t fire my arse and I can keep you flush in credits. Thanks for the sympathetic ear.”

The bartender’s nodded in a friendly fashion and moved to serve some customers further down the bar, leaving Caitlyn to return to feeling somewhat sorry for herself.

It really wasn’t fair. She had done most of the investigation properly. She had chased all leads, reported back to her sergeant all her findings, gotten warrants for all the searches. It was just taking too long to get approval for that one last piece of the puzzle.

And then, her sergeant had order her to turn the investigation over to the laziest detective squad in the whole precinct. By the time they got around to it, the Volus with too big a mouth and too deep a pocket would inevitably leave the Citadel.

In her mind, it was worth cutting the corners. He was trading slaves with criminal organisations out near Uwan Oche in the Terminus Systems. Better to stop him while they had jurisdiction rather than relying on a Spectre to chase him down – even if the council would agree to allocate the resources.

But when she had marched into her sergeant’s office, evidence and Volus in hand, he had immediately flared his mandibles in shock, apologised to her suspect for any inconvenience, dressed her down for “overstepping” and marched her right up to the Presidium Embassies to explain to Executor Pallin just what the hell was she thinking?

It had only gotten worse from then on.

Executor Pallin had not been understanding at all:

“You mean to tell me, Officer Kirramman, that instead of referring this case to the Detective Three Kappa Squad, as your sergeant ordered, you ignored that direct command and instigated an embarrassing scene with a valued member of the Turian client race?”

Caitlyn swallowed.

“Sir, I promise, I had followed procedure until that order, but it was going to take too long. My sources had heard the Volus brag about a high speed track out to Noveria-“

“Your source being the indolent intoxicated salarian who had been thrown out of multiple irreputable venues on the citadel?” Executor Pallin’s tone grew more pointed with every word.

“You cannot hold that against Teloth,” she had protested. “He’s been reliable before.”

“Before when? The second cup?”

“He led us to breaking up the Blue Sun’s smuggling ring in Zakera Ward.”

Pallin’s brow plates furrowed furiously, a single claw tapping against his desk.

“And how many times have we put him in the drink tank and had him lie in order to get an early release?” His voice rumbled with rage. “Furthermore, did you even stop to consider that Teloth’s family is in rivalry with the Volus Corporation whose citadel representative you just arrested?”

Caitlyn’s jaw dropped.

“Sir, I…”

“No. You did not consider anything but your own progression. You humans. Always far too ambitious for your own good-”

The conversation had not gotten any better. The more she tried to show the evidence of transactions, clearly labelled with the Volus’s credit number that had been bounced throughout multiple shell companies in various wards, the more outraged Pallin appeared to become. Finally, it all culminated in her expressing her honest views about the whole situation, which resulted in Pallin requesting her immediate restriction to desk duties, while he considered her future within C-Sec at all.

Caitlyn sighed, running a hand through her long blue-black hair. Maybe she should have stayed with the Alliance. The N7 offer might have lapsed but she could reenlist as an NCO and maybe get something going. That or return to earth and take up her father’s offer of working for Piltover Corporation in their tech lab.

The second thought made her stomach drop. That would require a lot of apologies, and an acknowledgement that Tobias was right when he told her she could not go gallivanting off into the Milky Way to ‘waste her talent fighting aliens’ when she could stay on Earth and help design new tech.

That fight had been horrific. She hadn’t spoken with him since, nor him with her. What had happened to her mother had solidified the icy silence.

From behind her came a smooth and melodious voice, breaking her from her reverie.

“By the Goddess, you look terrible.”

Caitlyn stiffened. She recognised that voice.

“Didn’t I tell you the next time I saw you, I’d shoot you?” she snapped, sipping her now nearly empty drink.

She heard a laugh in response.

“I know you didn’t mean everything you said in the heat of battle.”

The Asari slid into the seat next to her. Caitlyn, partially out of habit, mostly out of familiarity, glanced at her. She was purple, with gold face markings, and clad in a white and gold gown that was positively scandalous by Asari standards. She had no weapons, but Caitlyn knew that didn’t mean anything.

Mel Medarda was a biotic commando. She didn’t need a gun to ruin someone’s day. With an elegant wave, she beckoned the Turian Bartender over.

“One akantha for me and another of whatever my friend here is drinking.”

Caitlyn bristled. Even ordering a drink, Mel couldn’t help but appear to be graceful, congenial and warm. It was irritating, especially with how insidious and political Mel had proven herself to be.

“It wasn’t in the heat of battle, as I recall,” Caitlyn replied coolly. “Even though it was my Alliance Squad who had made the sacrifices to turn back those Batarian Raiders, my squad mates who were left crippled and who had died, it was your Asari Commandos who got the recognition from the Council.”

Mel was silent in response. Caitlyn took the opportunity to face her, keeping her features carefully schooled as blank as possible. Mel’s expression was calm, almost serene, but there was something in her eyes, a tinge of regret or perhaps sadness that Caitlyn absolutely did not have the time or patience to unpack. Turning back, she noticed the Turian Bartender had deposited their drinks in front of them.

“Whatever it is you’re doing here, whatever you’re trying to talk me into, I am as far from interested as possible. Thanks for the drink.”

“You do not even know what you’re turning down,” Mel finally spoke and to Caitlyn’s surprise, she sounded almost desperate. It was entirely unlike Mel, who had played the consummate professional diplomat before unveiling herself as a biotic powerhouse like none other when the chips were down.

“Don’t I?” Caitlyn replied. “I know how you work. You gave us something to believe in, made us think the risks were worth it to finally get some respect on the Alliance’s contributions to Citadel Space. Then, when the humans are done doing what humans do, you swoop in and take all the praise.”

Mel sipped her drink. Caitlyn thought that she would perhaps decide it wasn’t worth the fight. But as per usual, Mel chose her own brand of diplomacy:

“I am as disgusted as you are with what happened to you all. What it cost you.”

Caitlyn stared her down, blue eyes flashing.

“You have no clue what it cost me.”

“I know you left the Alliance Military shortly after. Gave up on the N7 offer that they had leveraged in recognition of your service. Floated around until you decided to try your hand at police work.”

Mel smirked slightly before continuing.

“I also know that did not go so well, did it?”

A horrible feeling began to settle in Caitlyn’s stomach as her face flushed. Already? She knew already?

“Don’t you Asari have anything better to do than gossip?” Caitlyn spat in annoyance.

Mel, much to Caitlyn’s disgust, laughed loudly.

“My dear, the tale of Officer Kirramman’s dressing down and subsequent all-but-firing was heard almost before you even left Pallin’s office.”

There was a lull in the conversation and Caitlyn, as much as she hated it, could feel a prickling of curiosity begin to fill her as her rage at Mel subsided and her mind cleared. Asari Biotic Commandos did not waste their time on Citadel business unless there was a vested interest from the Asari Republics. Mel was more often deployed under a cover, either as a companion or diplomat, only publicly acknowledging her Commando Status when required.

Despite Pallin’s opinion, Caitlyn was a natural detective. Something was going on and something didn’t add up.

“Ok, fine,” she snapped. “I’ll bite. Why are you here?”

Mel smiled delightedly.

“To be honest, I thought I would have to buy you a few more drinks before you would be amenable.”

“You caught me already two drinks down. Consider me open for discussion.”

Mel hummed approvingly. Caitlyn noticed that she seemed to relax and was surprised that she felt a pang of regret for being so cold to her. She and Mel had been soldiers-in-arms before. They’d fought side by side, defended innocent people and unpicked a terrible pattern of human trafficking. That kind of experience did lend itself to a bond.

It was only when politics got involved that Caitlyn had realised the depth of the messes Mel had to wade through.

“Before I begin, I need to be upfront with you about what I am proposing.” Mel started. “What we will be doing is not exactly legal nor is it illegal. It really does depend on where in the galaxy you are.”

Caitlyn stared.

“Mel Medarda, are you telling me that you’re engaging in criminal activity.”

“Absolutely not.” The reply was instantaneous. “At least not by the metrics of what C-Sec has drilling into that brain of yours.”

Caitlyn folded her arms and leaned back. The blue jacket she wore suddenly felt too tight as her body filled with adrenaline.

“You know I’m still technically C-Sec, right? Still able to arrest you for anything criminal that you confess to me.”

To Caitlyn’s disgust, Mel smirked again.

“You can absolutely try, and I wish all the best for your speedy recovery.”

To her credit, Caitlyn’s ego was not hurt too badly by that comment. She had to hand in her handgun when she was benched by Pallin, and she wasn’t permitted to carry her own sniper rifle nor use her own omnitool while tied to C-Sec – yet another restriction she grated under.

“Fair enough,” Caitlyn conceded. “Please, proceed.”

Mel nodded and took a sip of her Akantha before sliding a small plastic and metal disc across the bar.

“Take a look at this?”

Picking up the disc, Caitlyn realised it was two halves, closed like a clamshell. Popping it open revealed a holographic diagram. Intrigued, she lifted the projection up to get a better look.

The diagram was of a cylinder, filled with some sort of energy. It appeared to have a handle on top, which could be turned. The diagram did not have any measurements, or information regarding what kind of energy was contained.

“Is this some kind of energy cell?” she asked Mel.

“No,” came the reply. “This is some sort of Prothean Artifact. A very important one, it seems. Our current theory is that it contains some kind of element zero adjacent structure, although the dynamic movement appears unlike any eezo compound we have encountered.”

Caitlyn stared at her.

“You mean, anything you’ve encountered personally, or any Asari have encountered.”

“The latter,” Mel responded in a serious tone. “In fact, all attempts to analyse the purpose and reason for this artifact by any expert, no matter their race, have failed. This could be an eternal battery, a reality warping device, or even a bomb that could unravel all of time and space.”

Caitlyn swallowed. Now that was an absolute mystery. Handing back the disc, she grabbed her glass and took a sip.

“Why do you think I could help? My expertise is not in element zero.”

“I know of your engineering background,” Mel replied. “I know it’s extensive and I have seen it save you multiple times when your combat training has failed. That is not why I need your help however.”

She sighed and lowered her voice.

“I need your help because this artefact has been stolen.”

Caitlyn stiffened. Now that was something interesting.

“Stolen? From where? The Noxian Republic?”

Mel swallowed more of her drink and Caitlyn was horrified to realise that Mel’s behaviour this whole time was tinged not with nervousness but with fear. Pure, animal, hard to hide fear.

“No. Worse. From Thessia. From the depths of our archives.”

Caitlyn whistled low.

“That’s got to be a blow for you all. Isn’t Thessia super restrictive about visitors?”

 Mel pursed her lips defensively.

“We suspect the Shadow Broker is involved. But we are far behind the chase now. Worse still, the Matriarchs have decided to not involve the Council in this.”

“Not involve the Council?” Caitlyn was aghast “Are they mad?”

“According to the Matriarchs, if we report the artefact to the council as missing, they will ask about other items of importance we might have hidden and audit our sources of knowledge. They decided the risk was not worth the cost.”

Caitlyn felt a sense of injustice bubble in her gut.

“You’re telling me that the Asari are choosing to stick their head in the sand and allow something potentially unstable and dangerous to be let on the loose because they want to keep their secrets secret?”

Mel sighed and leaned forward. She rubbed her face with her hands and Caitlyn realised a second insight into her behaviour – Mel was exhausted.

“I had this exact argument with Matriarch Ambessa. I wrote a proposal, planning for us to hide anything that we don’t wish to be found.”

In response to Caitlyn’s slightly disgusted look, Mel allowed a tiny smirk to escape.

“Do not look at me like that, my dear, you of all people understand we have that capacity.”

Caitlyn snorted another laugh. It was a fair point. She allowed Mel to continue:

“However, when the accord was voted on and the Republic chose to not involve the resources of the Council, I began to lose what little faith I had left in the process. I do not even know if Matriarch Ambessa even set out my proposal for inclusion.”

“You know she didn’t,” Caitlyn replied. “She’s an isolationist by nature. And a mean one at that.”

“I might have said something to that tune when we next convened after the vote. She did not take my opposition well.”

“Well that explains why you’re in Citadel Space,” Caitlyn lightly cheered her glass against Mel’s. “I’m guessing you got relegated to a terrible post?”

“No. I resigned from the Noxian Commandos and Representatives, and had my name stricken from the service list.”

Time suddenly screeched to a halt

“You did what?”

“I was not going to stand by in the service of a nation that put its own superiority over possibly the existence of the rest of the universe.”

When she said it like that, Caitlyn thought Mel could have been talking about the weather.

“Yes, but surely there was another way, another unit you could transfer to…”

“We do not have units, and I cannot abide by the Asari Republics when they let something so risky continue to the detriment of everyone else. I at the least have that much moral fibre.”

She sipped her drink while Caitlyn stared at her. Mel smirked again.

“Surprised, are we?”

“Absolutely,” the response was immediate. “You stood by as dead Alliance servicemen and women went home without a single acknowledgement of their sacrifice because your Matriarchs wanted to claim the glory. How is this different?”

Mel paused.

“It is different because perhaps I am different.”

She shook herself, and Caitlyn felt a sense of something being hidden from her.

“No matter,” Mel continued. “That is not the time to discuss the past when the future is at risk.”

“I don’t think you get to choose that type of thing,” Caitlyn growled in response.

“Perhaps you’re right,” she conceded. “And we can argue this as much as we like later. For now, I need your help in tracking down this artefact and returning it to Thessia before someone finds out how to use it.”

Caitlyn leaned back, brushing her long hair off her face and looked down at the hands clasped in the lap of her blue BDUs.

“I have so many questions, but I think I want to start with the most important one: Why me?”

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mel smile again.

“Because I have a lot of the pieces already. I have a Turian Captain with crew and frigate who has travelled all parts of the galaxy and fought on almost as many planets as she’s stood. I have a wonderful engineer who can create magic out of spare scrap.”

She took a sip and continued:

“I have a genius engine expert, who can make machines sing. I have a medical expert, who can patch anyone up if it all goes wrong. But I am missing a detective. Someone with an oversight of the situation, who can think strategically, and put all the pieces together. Someone who is a leader.”

Caitlyn stared.

“And I’m your leader? A wash-out ex-military sniper failed-lawkeeper who has just been benched for not following policy? Hardly inspiring.”

Mel did not look away. Instead, her eyes gleamed.

“When you ask people to think of great human leaders, they tend to think of Commander Shepard, or Captain Anderson, especially with all the talk around finding the first Human Spectre. But I do not.”

Caitlyn was transfixed. Mel’s tone was intense. Her attention had her pinned.

“I think of you and your squad. Lieutenant Kirramman, with her team of enlisted grunts, holding the line against Batarian Raiders while the Alliance and the Council argued about whose responsibility that colony was. Who, when we were permitted to intervene, was the first one in place in overwatch, and the last out of any skirmish with perfect accuracy the entire time. Who mourned every single death like they were her own family, be they in her squad or not.”

Caitlyn flushed. She had heard this before, from her CO when she had requested an honourable discharge. Captain Greyson had told her that she would probably get a promotion to Staff Lieutenant, that the N7 program had made her an offer to specialise given her performance with limited resources and undermanned defence posts.

She had told Caitlyn that even though the Council thought nothing of her achievements, that the Alliance had noticed her and wanted to develop her further.

And all she could think about was how many people she had lost.

Mel, unaware of her thoughts, continued.

“I think of your capacity to solve problems on the fly. To not let up when the going is tough.”

“Mel, you do know they didn’t like me, right?” Caitlyn replied. “My squad? They thought I was some soft gloved rich heiress from Earth…”

“You don’t know what they thought, Caitlyn.”

Caitlyn kept her mouth shut. Mel didn’t need to know all of it. It was hard enough being reminded of her failure.

“But it’s not that you’re inherently unlikeable, Caitlyn. It’s that you do the job in front of you. I need that. I need that perspective, that human ability not to get caught up in the politics, or the need to follow due process. I need results.”

Mel paused.

“Plus, I know you’re a decent shot.”

Caitlyn scoffed, feeling her ego take over.

“Excuse me, I am an excellent shot.”

The laughter from Mel this time was surprised and beautiful. Caitlyn found herself grinning. They fell into a somewhat comfortable silence, swirling the last of their drinks in their respective glasses.

“I promise you; this is good work.” Mel suddenly broke the silence, pleading. “It is not inherently honest – we are going against the Asari Republics mandate. But I have resources to pay you, and I swear that once we return the artefact to Thessia, you will have your choice of rewards.”

Caitlyn looked for any sign of falsehood, any sign of something hidden.

“If we get caught, are you saying I could end up in jail?”

Mel gave another one of her small, wicked smiles.

“You will not.” Caitlyn found herself believing the Asari. “Imprisoning anyone for attempting to recover what was never claimed to be lost is quite a paradox. Me, however?”

The smirk this time was absolute wicked.

“It’s my crew, my plan, my strategy. The Asari might be somewhat annoyed.”

Caitlyn found herself smiling in response.

“It might be worth it just to see them attempt to arrest you.”

“Honestly, I could use the exercise,” Mel replied, casually. “So, are you in?”

Caitlyn paused. The offer was intriguing. An adventure on the boundaries of intergalactic law, for a stolen artefact. The companions Mel spoke about also seemed interesting. She missed talking to engineers. There was only so many conversations she could have about guns before she missed augmenting omnitools.

Mel suddenly cleared her throat.

“There is… one other reason I need you and it is honestly a little time constrained.”

Caitlyn felt her gaze turn deadpan.

“Oh boy, here it is.”

Mel looked over her shoulder. Caitlyn followed her gaze to the two C-Sec officers who had just entered the Dark Star Lounge.

“Mel.” Caitlyn’s voice was curt. “What is going on?”

Mel gave a small, nervous noise.

“I figured if I could not talk you into it, I could give you reason to commit fast. See, there is one more piece of the puzzle.”

Mel stood casually. To anyone nearby, she would look like any other Asari Maiden, slightly intoxicated and preparing to leave the bar. She suddenly giggled and leaned into Caitlyn, grabbing her arm. To any outsider, the Asari would look to be flirting, but she spoke to Caitlyn with urgency.

“A detainee at C-Sec Customs. A mercenary who was caught trying to sneak into the Citadel in the hull of a merchant ship. I believe she has key information as to the last known whereabouts of the artefact.”

She ran a hand over Caitlyn’s hair, smoothing it down. Caitlyn realised that the two C-Sec Officers appeared to be looking for someone.

Fuck.

Mel continued, in that low voice:

“I also believe you still have your credentials to request a prisoner release.”

Double Fuck.

Mel pulled her to her feet. Caitlyn flushed. It would look like Mel had seductively handled her, but the Asari’s grip was strong. “I have some official documents for release, approved before I resigned from my Commando Role, but I need you to deliver them to the holding cell and bring me the contact for questioning.”

“Are you mad?” Caitlyn hissed back, keeping her voice low. “I do this, and my career is sunk.”

“Like it wasn’t sunk the moment you told Pallin that he needed to remove the anti-human stick from his arse.”

“Oh god, you did hear about it.”

Caitlyn felt Mel’s breath tickle her ear as she laughed softly.

“I have ears everywhere. So, do you want to be fired now, or fired later?”

Caitlyn felt herself sag. In all honesty, she was already committed the moment she had seen the hologram of the artefact. If there was one thing Caitlyn Kirramman could not resist, it was a mystery.

Chapter Text

Vi’s head fucking ached.

While this was not unusual, given her choice of career in cracking skulls and claiming bounties, this time it really was the kind of headache that makes you want to be at least gently knocked unconscious, if not have your head bashed in by a Krogan.

At least the Krogan would be quick.

The buzzing from the holding cell was going to drive her insane. Whomever had designed this bullshit place had figured out real quick the right tone to drive a person completely batshit.

She let her head rest against the wall. In the beginning, she’d made the rookie error of letting the cops know that not only was she a great hand with a shotgun, but she was also an amazing hand with her… well, her hands.

Turns out the Alliance Biotic Academy training had been useful when she was a grunt. Almost made up for the whole ‘taking her from the adoption agency and turning her into a meatshield’ bullshit. While she wasn’t great at the whole ranged thing, she was excellent at getting up close and dirty.

She wondered now if she could solve this problem like any other and punch her way out. The wall in front of her was metal, sure, but she was the best close quarters combatant of her class. Her instructors had even paused when it came to sparring. Surely, she could rip through this pissy little metal wall with no stress?

She allowed the biotic energy to coalesce around her hands. The tattoos on her arms glowed, resonating with her natural aptitude. With a grin, she pulled her hands back…

The jolt of electricity put the concept of punching her way out to rest. Turns out, C-Sec had realised her capacity and thrown her into a holding cell that was definitively eezo proof.

God fucking damn it.

Growling she slumped, resting her head on the wall, releasing her focus. Her head hurt even worse now, to the point where even the cool metal didn’t do much to ease the pain.

Vi did not know how long she’d been in the holding cell. She knew prison, knew that time could stretch like crazy. Her first few stints in places made her very accustomed to pausing her mental clock whenever the clang of the cell door hit, so to speak.

But that didn’t mean she liked the sensation of shut-up-and-wait.

Especially when the cell is designed to turn your brain into a bowl of gruel.

“Whatever fuckin’ engineer designed this fuckin’ cell deserves to be thrown into a black fuckin’ hole,” she muttered.

“Well, that is not very kind to the hard-working people at C-Sec.” came a very pointed sounding yet polite reply.

Vi whirled on the spot before finding herself frozen to said spot.

God damn, C-Sec hired a fuckin’ model for the interrogation?

A human woman, taller than her, long hair on the blue side of blue black, with piercing cerulean eyes (she’d read that word in a book once) stood in front of the forcefield at the front of her cell. The officer was wearing what appeared to be some sort of off-duty wear with long legs clad in standard issue combat boots, some dark blue combat pants and a tight black t-shirt which did indeed hug some knock-your-teeth-out-and-pour-you-tea knockers.

Vi was only a very thirsty human. She liked what she liked.

An open blue jacket of the same military ready style was looped over one arm. The officer tilted her head to one side with a narrowing of the eyes, clearly noticing Vi noticing her.

“See something you wish to comment on?”

Vi smirked.

“Hey, if every C-Sec officer looked like you, everyone would be dying to be arrested.”

Vi saw the woman flush high on her cheeks, but those bright blue eyes hardened.

“Very funny. Like I have not heard that kind of banter before. What, am I supposed to reply with something to the tune of respect my authority?”

“Babe, I’ll respect anything you want me to do, so long as you tell me to look at you while I do it.”

It was almost too easy. Vi saw the woman’s chest catch, as if something caught in her mind as well as her body. She watched those kissable lips part, catching the cute gap between her front teeth as the officer sighed with a slight smile.

“Ok, so you are a different level of disrespectful degenerate. That one is on me for not predicting it.”

Vi found herself barking out a laugh in response. Disrespectful degenerate?

“I’ll only disrespect you if you want me to, princess.”

Suddenly it was like the temperature had dropped twelve degrees. The hottie’s shoulders appeared to stiffen as she drew herself up to her full height. Vi, to her credit, managed to stop herself from shrinking back from the forcefield between them.

Princess is the keyword then.

Staring down at Vi, with an icy glare, the woman spoke again.

“You have had your fun. What I need from you now is your cooperation.”

Vi snorted.

“Yeah, sure thing, cooperation with C-Sec. That’s gonna work for me.” She leaned a forearm up against the side of the cell where the forcefield bordered. Her arm hairs tingled a bit. “Tell me, did they hire you because they found humans cooperate better with their own kind? Or just because you looked good in that uniform?”

If Vi had thought the woman was already cold, she was wrong. Turns out Hottie C-Sexy was able to go to subzero temperatures at will.

“My employability with C-Sec is not any of your concern.” The reply was almost bitten out, each syllable sharpened with tone.

Vi found the whole thing incredibly intimidating. And hot. Intimidatingly hot. And when Vi found someone hot, she really couldn’t help herself:

“Oh yeah? What if I’m just a citizen who is looking out for those willing to clean up the hard, hard streets of the Citadel. Gotta know where my tax dollars are going.”

The officer scoffed.

“Clearly, you must think I am an idiot.”

She lifted a data pad and began to read aloud. Vi couldn’t help but notice the length of her fingers and the graceful way she handled the plastic square.

Damn. Ok then. It's gonna be like that.

“Your name is Violet Lane, but you go by Vi. You were born at Outpost Zaun, in the Artemis Tau cluster-”

Vi felt the strategy coming. Tell the inmate everything you know about them? Pfft. Amateur hour. Intervention was the best strategy here. Take the wind out from the info-wings:

“Which was unfortunately destroyed in a pirate attack when I was young and lost everyone I’ve ever known, yadda yadda yadda,” Vi interrupted savagely. “I was adopted out of the refugees by the Alliance Military due to my natural biotic abilities, trained at the Alliance Biotic Academy, ranked best in close quarters combat, worst in everything else, dishonourably discharged after punching my loser of a fuckin’ CO, now merc for hire out in the Terminus Systems. Wanted for some stuff, mostly assault, some issues with gangs but I don’t do that shit anymore…”

Vi concluded the report with rolled eyes.

“Congratulations, you’re not just a pretty face. You read my criminal history. Did you want some kind of reward? Or was this a poor attempt to get me to think you’re empathetic because it’s not working.”

Instead of snarking back, the woman paused, looking at Vi with an uncomfortable sense of understanding. That icy gaze thawed slightly but remained unwavering. Vi fought against her instinct to look away.

Then, the officer spoke again and with each word, Vi felt a horrible rising feeling of awkwardness:

“I did not read your report, Vi. Given that you are charged with illegal entry to the Citadel and your offence is an immigration one, not a criminal one, your profile for this detainment only contains name and home world.”

The woman smiled slightly.

“But thank you for sharing.”

Vi flushed, immediately on the back foot.

“Hey, I could be lying.”

“You could be,” the hot officer admitted. “But you are not.”

She sighed, pulled that stupid attractive jacket on and ran her hands through her hair, pushing it off her face.

“And to be honest with you? I don’t care.”

The woman stared down at Vi with a fierce intensity.

“What I care about is getting you out of there.”

Vi fought the sudden urge to pinch herself and check if she was dreaming. This goddamn goddess in military gear (yeah, ok, so Vi had a thing for powerful women) was staring at her like she’d hung the goddamn stars and moon.

“Huh. That’s not something I expected I’d ever hear from a C-Sec Officer…”

“I am not your typical C-Sec Officer,” the woman replied, leaning over to punch in a keycode. “However, I need to explain the situation we are in before we go any further.”

Vi snorted in response, even though there were plenty of offers she would be quite happy to make to this woman. Instead, she took refuge in the brutal truth:

“Sure thing, a C-Sec Officer asking for a promise from a Merc. We only trade in one thing, baby. Cold, hard credits.”

The woman, to Vi’s surprise, chuckled again.

“I think that can be arranged,” she said silkily, almost absentmindedly as she continued to key in whatever code she was working on. “However, I’m not the one who has the capacity to make the bargain. To meet her, you’ll have to come with me.”

A mysterious powerful woman with resources deep enough to compromise a C-Sec hottie? Interest piqued.

Vi looked at the woman for any sign of connection, any sign of a relationship outside of the professional. To her credit, the officer gave nothing in response. If Vi wanted to know who the mystery power player was, she would have to agree to whatever her captor proposed.

“So, you’re saying ‘come with me if you want to live’ or something?” Vi commented, buying herself some time.

Another blue icy look was directed her way.

“To be perfectly frank, I do not mind either way,” the woman retorted. “I’ve had a hell of a day, your window for freedom is quickly expiring and I don’t even know if I can trust you.”

There was a beep. Then a pause. The forcefield remained fixed, but it was clear all the officer had to do was one final check and Vi would be free.

“So, here’s the shit or get off the pot moment,” the woman continued, holding a keycard. “Because I only have one shot at this, and if you blow it, you are back in here and my career is toast.”

Vi felt herself raise an eyebrow. Never had the phrase ‘shit or get off the pot’ sounded quite so attractive and sweet. The crooked copper continued:

“Can I trust you to behave yourself sufficiently or shall I just turn and walk myself back into what is turning into a dead-end opportunity knowing full well I tried my best?”

“Depends on if you’re willing to get those pretty hands all dirty by handling someone like me.”

The ice-cold look was back, and boy was it worth it.

“From what my… employer has suggested, you have key information in the tracking of an artefact that has been stolen. My job is to get that information from you,” the woman looked over her shoulder then continued. “Once we have gotten what information we require from you in exchange for your freedom to whatever hellhole you wish to be dropped off at, we will then be heading to Omega-”

“Omega?!” Vi wasn’t really the type to interrupt, given the context of this discussion, but it seemed appropriate.

The woman shushed her.

“Do you want us to get caught?”

“You want to go to Omega? You?”

The officer scowled at Vi’s tone.

“Given that what we are seeking has so far appear to be moved through nefarious means, Omega appears to be the obvious starting point, once again, if it is confirmed by you.” Another stare was levelled at Vi. “Is that going to be problem?”

Vi chuckled darkly and leaned against the wall again, fixing the officer with a heated stare. The woman’s pupils dilated.

“Omega is gonna eat you alive, princess.”

There was a long pause. A sizzling one. The woman stared at Vi with a hunger that came almost from nowhere.  Vi felt her pulse increase, an electricity in her nerves unlike any biotic pull. She almost felt pinned, like she was locked into the sights of the highest-powered rifle in the universe.

Vi knew in prison time had no meaning. But this did seem to be an almost endless moment of tension, a rapidly coiling tightening up that had little to do with the dynamic they were in.

Then the tension broke, as understanding overtook what Vi thought to be hunger.

“You make a valid point. I haven’t exactly spent much time in the Terminus Systems, and I am well aware that law keepers like me are not welcome there.”

The woman sighed, a slight slump to her shoulders.

"Well, fuck me, I guess.”

Oh god, Vi wished she could.

Instead, she did something that could probably have a much worse consequence:

“I could come with you. To Omega.”

That shook the copper out of the cage of thought she’d locked herself in.

“You would come with us?”

“Yeah,” Vi found herself replying, almost to her own detriment with the eagerness. “I’m a Merc. We all have landing codes there. I have connections, people I know. And Aria doesn’t exactly wanna kill me, so there’s that as an advantage.”

The woman stared at Vi.

“What’s in it for you?” she asked, her tone suspicious. Vi fought the urge to flinch.

Play it cool, play it cool, play it cool…

“It just means my rate has gone up, is all. And by the sounds of it, your… benefactor,” she did an impression of the woman’s Earth English accent. “Can afford someone like me as a guide.”

The woman looked decidedly unimpressed. Vi gave herself a mental pat on the back.

“You know I cannot approve this,” she commented, although the keycard in her hand was already beginning to move down to the sensor. “And we will still need to escort you out in handcuffs to, you know, make sure we do not end up in a firefight.”

“Good thing I have no problem with you restraining me then.”

Yeah… that one came out automatically.

To her credit, the hottie cop’s reaction was miniscule. A trembling of the hands and a hot glance at Vi that made her feel like she was being looked right through.

“You will have to behave yourself while I walk you through the C-Sec headquarters. Otherwise, you can kiss your freedom goodbye.”

As the barrier came down, Vi stuck her hands out sweetly, fighting back the automatically loaded comment about ‘kissing something else’ that was slotting itself into her vocal cords.

The cuffs clicking their way across her wrists helped douse any provocative concepts in her mind. This was not her favourite environment to be restrained in. Clearly, Vi’s body language has shifted, and her captor noticed. Instead of what she expected (a cuff and a “calm the fuck down” hissed in her direction), the hot cop took her by surprise.

She leaned in and whispered very quietly:

“I’m sorry. I promise it’s only temporary, until I can get you out via processing.”

With a gentleness Vi had only experienced fleetingly, the woman manoeuvred her a little to bring her out of the cell. She clasped Vi’s elbow gently and again, leaned into her ear again to murmur:

“I know you don’t like this. It’s ok. We’ll get through this together.”

Despite the rampant desire to make a snarky comment to throw her captor off balance, Vi found herself settling down a little with a rather adorable realisation:

Hey. C-Sexy is kinda sweet. Like a cupcake.

The word filtered through Vi’s lexicon before it found itself nestled next to the image of the tall, blue haired hottie currently fussing over her.

Certainly, that nickname would be sticking.

Eventually, it seemed like the woman was satisfied. She pulled Vi into an escort position, holding her by her elbow. In the moment before she schooled her features, Vi noticed the same tremor in her hands, and dilation of her pupils.

In response, she slightly tensed then released her muscles, feigning stiffness. Again, there was the dilation and this time, a tightening of the jaw.

Well, well, well that is interesting.

It wasn’t every day the galaxy dropped something like this in Vi’s lap.

“What’s your name, anyway?” she asked quietly, letting the syllables drawl slightly for full effect.

To the woman’s credit, she barely paused, before replying:

“Caitlyn Kirramman.”

And with that, Vi’s world came to a screeching halt.

Vi had been in the military long enough to make connections – connections she used to find muscle for her mercenary work. After enough time around the rejects of the academy, there was no way she had not heard of the dirt on Lieutenant Caitlyn Kirramman.

She was the sniper who held off the batarian raiders to the detriment of her squad while the Alliance and Council dilly-dallied over who was responsible for responding. She should be regarded as a hero, should be part of that legend, of the humans who can do anything.

Most of her contacts left it at that. Except, that was not the end of the story, according to some of the veterans Vi had spoken to, the ones who were deep in their cups across the galaxy…

Caitlyn was also the infiltrator who rewired the generators at the chokepoints of the colony to explode, to buy her people time to retreat to a defensible position. She sacrificed countless human lives to ensure they went off while ensuring Asari Commandos escape from their sorties into the enemy encampments. It caused a delaying of assistance as the Alliance Brass had to decide which side she was on, the Asari, the Batarian or Humanity.

The worst of it was what the oldest and bitterest ex-servicemen spoke of: she was the one who stood by, as Asari commandos went on to wipe out the nest of batarians who, in response to her guerilla tactics were about to deploy a bioweapon to wipe out a whole colony of humans.

Vi’s family had been taken by pirates. She knew the horrors they could unleash. But to stand by and let the Asari deal with it? To not strike the final blow? To shy away when she had already gotten so much human blood on her hands?

If that lack of moral fibre was true, then no wonder she turned crooked.

Caitlyn felt her stiffen. She paused and glanced down at Vi. Then, a twisted expression of self-loathing skittered across her face.

“Ah. That’s right. Ex-military. I see my reputation proceeds me.”

Caitlyn sighed and leaned into whisper once more. Her voice was cold, snarling, savage, fuelled with hissed frustration as she spat her retort into Vi’s ear:

“I don’t care what you must think of me, or what rot you have heard,” if Caitlyn was annoyed previously, this was like a blizzard of rage. “All I care about is getting you out of here and to the rendezvous. Then you can decide if escorting us to Omega is still worth your time.”

Vi wait for the blow, for the slap or manhandling that was used when an emphatic point was made. But even with the anger, Caitlyn did not jostle Vi. There was no shaking or taking advantage of Vi’s limited movement. Just patience and a growing sense of discomfort.

Vi took the only route she felt confident in.

“Look, cupcake, I’m not really one for rumours,” Vi half-lied. “Ask anyone in the Terminus Systems and they’ll tell you seven different versions of how I claimed even one of my bounties.”

There was a pause.

“Vi,” Caitlyn replied. “Did you call me cupcake?”

“Yeah,” said Vi. “Because you’re so sweet. Like a cupcake.”

The tension was broken as Caitlyn snorted.

“What a bizarre thing to say when I have you in handcuffs.”

“Hey, keep me in handcuffs and what I’ll do will rock your world, cupcake.”

Caitlyn groaned in frustration but Vi was delighted. The tension had disappeared. Even if Caitlyn was the worst kind of soldier, there was nothing in her behaviour that said Vi should be worried.

“Can you at least try to pretend you’re in custody?” Caitlyn complained. “At least until we get out of C-Sec Headquarters?”

“Sure thing, cupcake.” Vi responded, smirking.

“And stop calling me that.”

“Nah, this is part of the Vi Mercenary Service - Great biceps, passage to Omega, and adorable nicknames.”

“Can I cancel my membership?”

“Unfortunately, not. It’s got a ten-day minimum charge. Looks like you’re stuck with me, Cupcake.”

Caitlyn groaned again, before once more putting on her vaguely alert C-Sec officer face. They began to make their way to the processing area of C-Sec Headquarters, looking for all the world as prisoner and detainer.

As they walked, Vi thought on each of Caitlyn’s actions. Everything she did seemed determined by who she wanted people to perceive her as, not necessarily what she felt. It seemed like such an odd way to live, a putting on and shucking of personality as situations demanded.

Perhaps Caitlyn was just what her reputation said – the ultimate opportunistic coward.

A flash to being held gently by the elbow as hot breath hit the side of her neck when Caitlyn had leaned in to defend herself resonated in Vi’s mind. No, there was something deeper going on here. Something kinda beautifully broken. Vi hadn’t felt quite as intrigued in a long time. Adding in the promises of a mysterious benefactor and a trip to the old stomping ground of Omega meant that Vi was absolutely ready to join up with this crew of lunatics.

As they approached the release area, a brown Turian with red markings and a short fringe suddenly held up a hand.

“Halt, Kirramman,” For a Turian he sounded almost friendly. “I don’t see any approval for the release of this prisoner. What gives? Aren’t you restricted to desk duty anyway for that stunt you pulled with Pallin and that volus guy?”

“Hey Sivus, nice seeing you,” Caitlyn replied, casually. “Finally got your carapace off of traffic, I see?”

The Turian, Sivus, chuckled.

“Thank Vakarian for pissing off Pallin enough to arrange a switch,” he looked over his shoulder before continuing. “Seems like his cowboy ways are beginning to grate the Executor.”

Caitlyn replied with a smile.

“Hey, I am not one to talk about cowboy ways. It would be quite hypocritical of me to judge Garrus.” She paused before continuing, “Hang on, he wasn’t on traffic though? He was doing that gang investigation.”

Sivus looked over his shoulder before continuing, leaning in close.

“They switched me with Casvius, moved Casvius to the investigation and made Vakarian locked up in traffic,” the Turian explained. “Pallin was real upset with him. I reckon he’ll be there until there’s something that requires his detective skillset. Y’know, something that requires someone to be a real suspicious bastard about somethin’.”

Caitlyn laughed.

“Well, we know that wouldn’t be you.”

“Yeah,” replied Sivus. “I like the quiet life. Anyway, what gives with the prisoner?"

“Oh, her?” Caitlyn said, offhandedly and Vi fought the urge to look annoyed. “Nothing big, it was just some paperwork was filed with me from the Noxian Republic?”

Sivus appeared to grimace, his mandibles shifting. Vi suddenly felt her heart sink. The Fucking Noxian Republic? What the fuck was Caitlyn involved in?

Sivas obviously felt the same.

“Woof, that super isolationist Asari sector? The ones with those super crazy biotic commanders?”

With a nod, Caitlyn replied.

“The very same. Seems like this one here knows a little too much about certain going-ons in that sector. They wish to question her themselves.”

She paused again, looking for all the world like a disengaged, lazy C-Sec officer. Only Vi could feel the tension in her body, the way in which every move was orchestrated.

“Trust me, this is purely administrative. Nowhere near fieldwork” Caitlyn seemed to manage to look even more disinterested. “All I have got to do to clear the notification is to deliver her to their contact in the market then come back and file the completion certificate. All the paperwork is in the processing client. Go on, check?”

Sivus nodded and looked down at his station, tapping on a few links and swiping. Vi felt herself begin to sweat. This was taking too long, and she could feel the eyes of the other, more proactive officers on her. She began to shift, only for Caitlyn’s grip on her elbow to squeeze slightly.

But it was not a violent touch.

Instead, Vi realised Caitlyn was trying to calm her down, to assuage her anxiety. She exhaled softly and settled back into her body. Either they were gonna pull this off, or Vi was gonna leave them in the dust. Right now, Caitlyn was right. It wasn’t worth worrying about.

“I don’t see…” rumbled Sivus before he suddenly tilted his head to the side. “Ah. Yeah. I got it. Prisoner transfer form lodged with an appropriate code. Seems a little out of date, but I’m sure it’s just an administrative error on their behalf. You know the Asari, a year is like a day to them. Of course, some stuff will be out of code.”

Caitlyn smiled.

“It's typical of the Asari, all talk, no walk. So, can we continue?”

“Yeah yeah, sure,” Sivus replied. “I don’t envy the suspect though. Those Biotic Commandos can be really nasty. Go on through!”

Vi thought they were home free. The lift to the main C-Sec building was right there. No one was approaching them. The plan was going to work.

Then Sivus called out again:

“Oh hey, Kirramman?”

Caitlyn turned and Vi felt her stiffen.

“Yeah?”

Sivus’s mandibles flared again.

“Don’t let the bastards get you down, ok? You’re alright for a human.”

Chapter Text

The elevator to the docking area above C-Sec seemed to take forever and with every second, Caitlyn felt herself grow more uncomfortable. The elevator was big enough for them to comfortably stand a few meters apart, yet Vi leaned against her arm slightly, pushing herself into Caitlyn’s side. The parts of them that touched tingled.

“You know we’re no longer in C-Sec,” she commented, softly. “You don’t have to play the part of obedient prisoner.”

Vi smirked up at her and Caitlyn’s stomach swooped – a sensation that brought with it another mental curse against her natural physical reactions.

“There’s still cameras, you know,” Vi muttered back. “Gotta keep up the illusion. We don’t wanna give your friend Sivus reason to look any closer at that paperwork you filed.”

Caitlyn rolled her eyes in response. The excuse was poor, and she knew they both knew it.

“Sivus is many things but thorough is not one of them,” she replied, trying to shut down whatever game Vi was playing. “We got lucky. Casvius would have been a problem.”

Vi raised an eyebrow.

“Oh yeah?”

“Casvius has a thing about process. He’s the type to consider a single missed press of a button a personal affront.”

Vi inhaled through her teeth, but still remained close to Caitlyn. Giving up on trying to make the Merc give her some space, Caitlyn decided to take the advantage and use their proximity to fully assess the person who was working so hard to get beneath her skin.

The mercenary was almost inhumanly pretty and definitely Caitlyn’s type. Pink hair, shaved on one side showing off a row of thick rectangular loops that laced her ear. The top two had small white LEDs implanted in them, signifying a double use as a communicator or translation device. Using her periphery, Caitlyn noticed that Vi had a slightly aquiline nose with a piercing – she could not tell if it was genetics or from a fracture that the Merc had fixed in the field. Either way, it added to her beauty, a strong line that mimicked that of her jaw. The individual flavour of Vi continued, with the tattoo of ‘VI’ under one of those steel grey eyes, on the same side as the small scar that pulled her lips up into an almost automatic smirk.

It was beyond an injustice that this was the type of assistance Mel’s planning had required. If there was a god in the universe, they had a perverse sense of humour.

Resettling her libido, Caitlyn again tried to look at Vi like a possible asset, not as a very attractive woman. She started her assessment looking for what the mercenary might have on her as a weapon, and what kind of load-out she might prefer:

As far as Caitlyn knew, especially if C-Sec had done their damn job, the mercenary was unarmed. The mag-holster at her lower back was empty, although set up for a shotgun of either the Devlon Industries Firestorm line or, more unlikely, due to their higher cost and rarity, the Rosenkov Sokolov variation. Underneath the straps of a well fitted dark grey webbing armour harness, she wore a grey singlet, although any combat loadout or plate had been clearly confiscated by C-Sec upon her arrest. The lack of combat plating revealed more of the intricate black tattoo of gears and mechanical motifs Caitlyne had noticed on Vi’s neck. That same ink flowed across muscled shoulders and down underneath the back of the shirt, across well built shoulders, following the flow of muscle and enough looking at that…

The brown pants Vi wore were a combination of military spec reinforced weave and leather, with buckles for what was probably an overlay of combat plate. Her boots were worn, but standard military spec for a close-up specialist, with reinforced toeplates and solid soles with strong grip. Caitlyn, for some reason she refused to question further, also tried to look for the small incision at the back of the skull that signified Vi’s biotic amp installation, but it was hard to find amongst the pink hair.

Caitlyn's professional summary was that Vi, while missing key parts of her loadout, look incredibly competent. She was strong, fit, had decent gear and didn’t seem to be the type to back down if credits were on the line. But there was also a sense of fun about her, some sort of underlying softness that Caitlyn got glimpses of in her movements and micro expressions.

As Caitlyn’s periphery concluded the inspection, Vi sighed.

“If you keep looking at me like that, you’re gonna give a girl ideas, Kirramman.”

Well, so much for the subtle assessment and softness.

“I was not looking at you like anything, Vi,” Caitlyn snapped. “It’s my job to know what I am letting loose on the universe.”

“You got nothing to worry about, cupcake,” came the reply. “I’m just trying to make my way in the galaxy the same as anyone else.”

“Mhm, and I am involved in a tantalising entanglement with the Salarian Councillor.”

Vi chortled.

“Wow, didn’t pick you as someone into that.”

“I am full of surprises.” Despite herself, Caitlyn found herself falling into the banter easily.

“Oh really? I can’t wait to find out, cupcake.”

“Keep calling me cupcake and you’ll see just how surprising I can be.”

“Damn, cupcake, sounds like you know how to show a girl a good time.”

Caitlyn let that one go, refusing to commit anything to talk that she would be unable to follow up on. To try and regain her composure, she decided she would be the one to put the space between them. Stepping back, she leaned against one of the walls of the lift with a sigh, looking at the shifting lights as the elevator continued to take its damn time.

The elevator ride had to be over soon, surely? She could hand Vi over and let the Asari deal with the incessant flirtatious banter and unwillingness to let even the slightest button remain unpressed. Deep down, Caitlyn hoped that Mel would scare Vi off. She didn’t need to be trapped on a Turian Frigate with this level of tension.

But Caitlyn was no fool. She also knew that, in throwing her lot in with Mel, things were changing rapidly. Already, her personal belongings (sniper rifle, omnitool, clothing, medals of service and some personal items) had already been moved by Mel to the frigate while she went to recover Vi and the lease on her apartment had been set up to close starting the next solar cycle. She had written and sent in her resignation letter to C-Sec, with admission to her poor behaviour both in the failed investigation into the Volus and her conduct with Pallin as reasons for why her employment should be ceased.

Had she not written the letter, both Mel and Caitlyn had agreed that C-Sec would probably open an investigation into Caitlyn’s service, especially once the Asari realised Mel had banked a prisoner release form just prior to resigning.

Caitlyn herself had an even bigger worry: there was even a possibility that, should C-Sec and the Asari kick up enough fuss about Vi's release and Caitlyn's resignation timing, that they would have to contend with Alliance Brass getting involved. She was a veteran after all. And, amongst all of this, was the fact they were chasing down something possibly galaxy threatening, possibly not.

Now was not the time to get entangled with a highly attractive, incredibly fit looking, very flirtatious mercenary. Anything to avoid that could only be beneficial.

For now, Caitlyn considered things in hand. She had a measure of Vi’s capabilities (she hoped) and enough rapport to ensure that Vi wouldn’t cause any issues on handover. All she had to do was just deliver Vi to Mel and let the Asari deal with her.

Finally, after the heat death of the universe could have come and gone, the elevator pulled up and the doors opened. Caitlyn breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to unlock Vi’s restraints only to see that Vi was scratching the back of her hair, the cuffs dangling from the other hand.

In response to Caitlyn’s outraged expression, the mercenary had the utter audacity to smirk.

“What? Did you expect me to wait for you to come out of whatever thought was keeping you occupied? You were right, I hate these things…”

Dropping the cuffs into the elevator, Vi stepped out into the docking area and stretched, before throwing a cheeky look over her shoulder.

“Are you coming, cupcake?”

Caitlyn had never been torn between frustration and attraction so much before. So, she took refuge in efficiency:

“For someone so interested in ‘maintaining the illusion’, your actions seem rather counterintuitive.”

“I had to think of some excuse to be able to stay close to you. Might be my only chance to know what your body feels like.”

Caitlyn felt her ears turn red. There was a pause, before Vi laughed. It wasn’t an unpleasant laugh. Strangely, it was more comforting than mocking.

“You can’t blame a girl for trying.”

Never mind, Caitlyn was going to kick Vi off the dock.

“I absolutely can, and I absolutely will.”

While Vi’s smile widened, Caitlyn took the opportunity to step past and make her way through the docking area. Mel had told them to look for a Turian Frigate, Kraxus Class, marked with dark maroon stripes instead of the orange standard. They were docked in what was considered ‘military’ landings, as opposed to civilian, so such a distinct ship could not be that hard to find-

“Eyes open, Caitlyn.” The voice came from a dock further out, behind a large Asari cruiser that was in the process of refuelling, but Caitlyn knew the voice well.

Ah. Mel.

Looking over, Caitlyn caught sight of her, sitting amongst some supply boxes near a dock that was indeed populated by a Turian Frigate of the correct description. She had changed out of her white gown into the red and black commando catsuit of her old division on Noxus. The outfit did give Caitlyn some pause. The last time she had seen Mel in it had been when the shitshow that was the post-operations briefing occurred after the bodies had been transported…

Shaking off the memory, she turned towards the Asari, leading Vi in her wake.

“Hey Mel, you’re not on board yet?”

Mel shook her head, leaning forwards with a friendly smile.

“Unfortunately, not,” the Asari commented airily. “The captain wants me to make sure you know the rules of the Sinestrus before you are allowed on deck.”

Taking in Caitlyn’s expression, which was probably halfway between shocked and offended, Mel laughed softly.

“Oh come on, do not take it personally. Sevika is somewhat… prickly even for a Turian, especially when you first meet her.”

There was a thud behind Caitlyn as Vi stopped in her tracks, heavily.

“Did I hear you say Sevika?” the mercenary suddenly spoke, her voice very strained. “As in Captain Sevika? Tall Turian, copper colour with dark red clan markings, very good with a heavy pistol, bailed out of one of the Turian Wolfpacks before turning to a good old mercenary life?”

Mel nodded, eyes mirthful. Caitlyn looked over her shoulder at Vi, puzzled, only to see that the formerly confident Vi had suddenly turned very pale.

“Well, it’s been real nice knowing you, Kirramman.” Vi’s tone was a shadow of her previous bravado. “Nice meeting you too, Asari, Mel, whatever your name is. Thanks for breaking me out, I’ll just be-”

A stasis field suddenly enveloped Vi, holding her still. Caitlyn reached for a sidearm, only to remember her personal weapon was one, a sniper rifle, and two, already probably on board the Sinestrus. Caitlyn heard Mel sigh. She looked over at the Asari, whose body tingled with a biotic glow as she stood slowly.

“I had thought we could have had a more civilised conversation, but alas, that was too much to hope for.”

Caitlyn blinked. Instead of sounding genteel and charming, there was an iron in Mel’s tone that Caitlyn had rarely heard. She shot Mel a puzzled look that basically screamed What the fuck is going on?

Mel, either illiterate to human facial movements, or out of some kind of strategy, ignored Caitlyn and continued:

“I am aware of the tension and history between you, Violet Lanes and Captain Sevika Aesecus. Trust me when I say that there will be absolutely no issue with your inclusion on this endeavour. Now…”

Vi’s stasis locked body floated over towards the edge of the dock before softly touching the ground. Mel gestured and the largest of the boxes shifted, enclosing them in a square. While escape would be possible, it would be difficult with the new obstacles.

“That's better. Nice and private,” Mel continued, casually. “As you can see an Asari Biotic Commando has no qualms about shanghaiing collaborators. However, I would rather this induction be more collegial, particularly when it comes to discussing your payment.”

Caitlyn’s throat went dry.

“Wait,” she croaked. “What do you mean, induction? You told me you just needed her information.”

Mel gave one of those smiles that made Caitlyn want to shoot her.

“You are a collector of strays, my dear. There was no way that you did not at least consider keeping her.”

Caitlyn flushed. While she had considered it, it was not in a professional capacity and absolutely was nothing more than a moments fantasy. Vi was the one to suggest she come to Omega, not Caitlyn.

“Plus,” Mel continued, appearing unaware of Caitlyn’s struggles to contain herself. “Who else is going to accompany us to Omega from the dock? Certainly not Sevika – there are people on Omega who still want their pound of flesh from her.”

Caitlyn was furious. She felt her nails dig into the palms of her hands. It wasn’t her that Mel had wanted. It was Vi.

“You knew? You knew we needed not information but recruitment? You lied to me. You used me to get her.”

“Because you needed to realise for yourself that she has value.” Mel’s response was in the same easy congenial tone that Caitlyn had grown to hate. “I know your feelings towards the criminally inclined. It was easier for you to be convinced to assist in her recruitment when you thought it was only temporary.”

Mel paused, looking at her nails. Caitlyn felt her anger grow. Mel was intentionally baiting her with the same overly affected Asari tone that she knew hit Caitlyn right in the gut.

Worse, the pantomime continued:

“Do not look at me like that,” This time the tone was chiding. “You know I need you as well, Caitlyn. I did not use you just for your C-Sec connection – you have a bunk on this ship too.”

Mel then had the audacity to roll her eyes.

“And I did not lie. We do need her information.”

“Do we?” Caitlyn growled, anger rising from the place inside her that watched her squad die to save Mel’s Asari colleagues. “Or are you just looking for more bodies to throw into any future firefight? You just effectively used my connections to kidnap her!”

“That is unfair, and you know it.” Mel’s voice was hard, unforgiving. “I do need her information, not just her capacity for violence, but her insight into the movement of goods through the black market, her access codes, relationships and resources. Sevika has said that she is probably the only human who can walk into any part of Omega and come out relatively unscathed. She will be compensated, the same as you.”

Mel’s expression once again turned to stone. Caitlyn had only ever seen her look like that once before – as they loaded the bodies into the transportation.

“For your information, I do know what I am doing.”

With that, Caitlyn knew she was being dismissed. Her stomach churned as the memory of the last time she had been on the receiving end of Asari Diplomacy in the field replayed in her head on repeat. She opened her mouth to interject, to fight, to force Mel to stop this bullshit and to listen, only to notice that Vi wasn’t looking at Mel anymore.

She was looking at Caitlyn with a whole new emotion. While previously, the Mercenary had been flirtatious at best and leering at worst, there was a different sort of understanding in those steel eyes. Not pity. Nothing so cruel. But the light of someone who realised that Caitlyn, in spite of everything, was trying to defend the mercenary she barely knew from the Asari who she had gone through hell with.

Vi looked at Caitlyn like she saw through the history and failures to the core of who she was. Caitlyn didn’t like it. Didn’t like feeling that seen. So, she said nothing.

She and Mel would be discussing this little shitshow later, though.

The Asari, having appeared to decide the matter was closed, removed the stasis from Vi, who dropped to her knees.

“Fucking hell, I haven’t been grabbed like that since I ran into a bald psychopathic kid who tried to turn my head inside out.”

“Thank you and my apologies,” Mel replied. “I had to make sure you did not respond in kind when I applied stasis, out of courtesy to your own biotic abilities.”

Vi looked up in surprise as she started to stand. Her movements were a little hesitant, as if she was preparing for another attack

“How did you know-oh. Sevika. Yeah, yeah she would know.”

“Sevika said that you’re knows for being quite up-close-and-personal in combat,” Mel commented. A smile began to slide across her face. “In fact, I do believe you might be the reason why her arm is in the state it is?”

“Hey, that wasn’t my fault,” Vi protested. “I tried to warn her not to stick her arm between those pistons but no she decided that the human didn’t know shit about engines.”

“As I recall from her side of the story, the arm was irrevocably damaged because you, how should we say, charged at her while the pistons were moving?”

Vi sighed, finally upright. She folded her arms, biceps flexing. Caitlyn did everything she could not to stare.

“It was that or let her get incendiary’d to death by Eclipse Engineers,” Vi protested. “We were surrounded with no shields and shitty armour we’d had to wear as part of our cover.”

She looked at the Sinestrus, an odd expression on her face. Caitlyn watched her, transfixed. This was the most honest that she’d seen Vi and it was about something regretful. It was as if the woman held nothing back, that she just spoke her mind no matter what came to it.

For her part, Vi appeared too lost in memory to notice Caitlyn’s unwavering stare. For this inattention, Caitlyn was very glad.

“I decided that the arm was worth less than the life,” Vi continued. “Seemed for a bit like Sevika didn’t see it that way.”

She shot a crooked smile at Mel.

“Would be nice to know she’s maybe changed her mind about that.”

Huh. She has a good heart.

Caitlyn had no clue where that thought had come from, but it could go right back where it belonged. The situation as already complex enough without her deciding that she liked the mercenary who she had been unknowingly sent to press-gang. Mel, ever the consummate professional, responded to the unspoken question:

“It is less that she has changed her mind and more that she understands the stakes at hand.”

“Oh good, great,” Vi snarked, her mood cooling suddenly. “You want me to get on a bucket with a highly trained Turian Wolf-Pack Captain who probably still has a grudge against me for saving her life. Sorry, Asari, I know a bad gig when I see one.”

“How rude of me,” Mel commented, appearing to ignore the refusal of the call from Vi. “I haven’t even explained myself and what we are aiming to do.”

“I don’t give a shit who you are and what you wanna do.” Vi was firm this time, confident. “Yeah, I was interested when there was an opportunity to spend some more time with the hot C-Sec officer, but there’s nothing about this deal that doesn’t stink.”

Caitlyn felt her ears burn. Surely Vi was joking?

“You would rather take your chances with zero resources to prevent you being rearrested over making a lot of credits assisting me?” Mel asked, casually.

“Do I need to reiterate?" Vi scoffed. "There is nothing you can say to me that will get me on that ship. I don’t give a fuck who or what you are, or how much is on the table. I’m out.”

She snapped out an arm with a closed fist and a biotic blast sent a pile of crates flying out of where they were boxed in. The movement was more of a punch than a graceful gesture like Caitlyn had seen Mel make. Caitlyn had seen biotics in action before, but this was definitely a more aggressive approach.

“Sorry, cupcake,” Vi said to Caitlyn as she walked past. “I know I’d said I’d help but I ain’t dying for no Asari Commando.”

After what Caitlyn had experienced in her time dealing with Asari Commandos, she could hardly blame Vi for having that opinion. Mel however, always had an ace up her sleeve.

“Well, that is absolutely fair,” she commented as Vi began to walk away. “I guess we will just have to chase after whomever is responsible for the smuggling of rare artefacts from Omega into the black markets across the systems. It is a relatively small circle of people, after all. They will absolutely lead us to the culprits who we are looking for, I am sure.”

There was a thudding of boots as Vi froze in her tracks. Her shoulders tightened. Caitlyn saw her hands clench, shaking. The mercenary was frozen, muscle tight as if she was preparing for a blow. It didn’t take a genius detective brainwave to realise that Vi was rattled by whatever unspoken threat lay deep in the subtext of Mel’s words.

When Vi looked over her shoulder, Caitlyn was surprised to see a hardness to her gaze, a perfect mixture of fear and anger shot out at Mel.

“Ah,” Mel said in response. “Now I have your attention.”

“What the fuck do you know about smuggling on Omega?” Vi’s tone was furious as she turned and moved threateningly towards the Asari. Anyone else would have recoiled. Mel, however, was made of sterner stuff.

“I know enough, Vi. What I am offering you is not just credits, although I promise they are extensive. I am offering you… let us call it an opportunity to do the right thing.”

At this moment, Caitlyn was completely lost. There was something niggling at her, a piece of information about Vi that was the biggest lever Mel could pull to bring the mercenary on side. Something that she was obviously not party to.

She tabled interrogations about that particular issue for when she and Mel inevitably had their discussion about Mel’s recruitment approach. For now, she watched as Vi’s jaw twitched.

“You don’t even know what you’re asking me to do,” Vi growled, menacingly. “You don’t realise just how messed up this whole situation is. If you go down this path, even with me, shit’s going to get fucked up.”

Mel tilted her head and folded her arms in response.

“See, here is the thing – I do know what I am asking of you. I do know how complicated this is. I would not be asking anyone for anything unless the stakes were incredibly high.”

She paused, eyes flicking over to Caitlyn, who saw an unspoken apology in them, before they hardened and returned to Vi.

“I can promise you will be rewarded handsomely should you come aboard.” Me explained once more. “However, you should know that your refusal to do so merely slows down the inevitable and locks us into a course where my team and I have to do things the hard way.”

Mel gave a rueful smile that made Caitlyn’s skin crawl.

“And trust me when I say, the galaxy does not want me to have to do things the hard way.”

Vi glared at Mel. The silence stretched on, the unspoken threat sitting deep in the unknown subtext of the conversation lingered in the air. Finally, Vi broke the silence:

“I don’t report to you if we do this, got it?” she snapped. “I’ll follow Sevika’s rules on board, I’ll do whatever I have to while boots on ground, but I am not even remotely interested in bein’ ordered around by you. You’re paying me for my skills, not my obedience.”

Mel smirked.

“That was never in question. I am not by my nature a natural leader of any squad, let alone one as… unique as the one I have assembled.”

Mel gestured to Caitlyn, and Vi’s eyes followed:

“You will be reporting to Caitlyn, who is heading up our investigation. I will be handling things on a much higher level.”

“Higher level?” Caitlyn interjected, feeling the smart of what felt like disrespect.

“Yes, negotiations with governments and military, sourcing resources, supplies, munitions, docking permissions, safe passage and playing the game of ‘who’s got the biggest quad?’ with any Krogan who needs a reminder. It is all incredibly riveting stuff.”

Caitlyn was surprised to hear Vi’s snort of amusement. She felt herself settle as Mel continued:

“If we are doing anything boots on the ground, I will also be under Caitlyn’s command – we will need her direction to make best use of all our talents.”

Vi looked over at Caitlyn with that strange light in her eyes – the one that made Caitlyn feel like she was being seen right through. Then, Vi smiled widely.

“Huh. I guess I’ll be calling you cupcake in private then.”

Caitlyn sighed. Fucking damn it, the flirting was back.

Ignoring Caitlyn’s flush, Vi turned back to Mel.

“If you want me, you'll need to negotiate my rate and I ain't cheap.” Caitlyn watched as Vi began to smirk. “I’m thinkin’ we’ll be looking at a retainer plus mission package at the top end. Y’know, given how important whatever this thing is that you’re after is to you.”

Mel smirked in response.

“I did expect a negotiation and I am well prepared, both in strategy and bank balance.”

Vi scoffed, pulling up a crate to sit on. She sprawled, leaning her elbows on her knees, and Caitlyn damn near had a heart attack. The woman was just so fucking hot and she was too fucking into it for her own safety. Luckily, Vi was seemingly unaware of Caitlyn's small gay meltdown as she continued to joust verbally with Mel.

"Yeah, we'll see how confident of that you are when I ask for most of it up front."

Mel chuckled and turned to Caitlyn, pulling out a datapad.

“Let me get through your induction onto the ship first. Then, while Caitlyn gets settled into her quarters and meets the rest of the team, you and I can finalise exactly what it costs to keep you loyal...”

Chapter Text

If there was one thing that Vi thought she was prepared for, it was a stiff negotiation. She’d bartered with Humans, Salarian, Turian, Krogan, Volus, Hanar, Asari, even the occasional Batarian. Most of her past commissions had been either incredibly cutthroat or self-important to the point of distraction. It hadn’t mattered – she’d gotten herself and whomever else she was speaking on behalf of the best rates and perks, plus high deposits.

It didn’t hurt that Vi was good at what she did. While she may have been somewhat unknown in Inner Citadel Space and Systems Alliance Space, the Terminus Systems and Attican Traverse all knew of the biotic shotgun- wielding mercenary who delivered what she promised. She’d run rival corporations into grounds with raids, compromised security to recover stolen prototypes, claimed countless bounties and even won a fighting tournament to help a rather attractive Asari maiden hell bent on revenge from her spurned Turian lover claim a bet.

That last job especially had delicious perks.

All in all, Vi was extremely confident when it came to the moving of credits and shaking of trees a mercenary’s life was made of. Hell, it paid to have a brand, especially one as hyper competent bad ass who delivered results with a smile and a wink.

But even despite all her experience of talking the talk before walking the walk and making people pay the check, she’d never negotiated with someone like Mel Medarda.

The first wobbly moment came when she’d pushed for half of her rate upfront and a locked-in high daily rate. Vi thought it would be the part that would make Mel baulk, but instead, she offered a sigh of relief and graciously accepted.

However, she counter offered the proposition with the fact that there was no expiry on the retainer, so half up front could very well become a quarter or less by the time they were through, plus it did lock her out of maybe claiming any bonus credits for services rendered outside of duty. Mel sweetly asked, with a twinkle in her eye, why wouldn’t Vi rather just accept a deposit and leave the rate slightly lower but open instead of being stuck on a reduced rate?

Vi was still unpacking the logic of that twist when Mel had leaned forward and double-punched by pointing out that arming such a highly skilled mercenary was a rather expensive endeavour. She then had the audacity to ask if Vi would like to take some of her up-front deposit in material goods organised by Sevika’s requisitions officer, especially given Mel had already negotiated contracts with as many high level-arms manufacturers as were available both in Citadel Space and in the black market?

The tantalising thought of finally getting her hands on a Solokov X or perhaps a Hyper Amp to assist with her L3 implant was indeed tempting. Vi also was keenly aware that her previous loadout armour (resplendently grey with bright yellow reinforcement in the mesh) was currently sitting in an evidence locker in the C-Sec headquarters along with her shotgun and grenades.

Shaking off the urge to deck herself out with the coolest gadgets, Vi had countered this negotiation tactic by mentioning that the purchases did not guarantee a discount on said purchase price, therefore eating into Mel’s upfront credit cost. In response, Mel had feigned offense that Vi would even consider a discount was not already burned into her contracts with the licensees of the weapons manufacturers, and that she would also leverage an at-cost price point for VI, given the “risks” Mel knew Vi would be asked to undertake.

While they were haggling over whether the first batch of medigel was involved in this onboarding equipment bonus or not was at the point that Vi had realised she had gotten completely lost in the weeds. Anytime she tried to take back control and look at the overall deal that she was agreeing to, Mel made her focus on the minutiae, preventing her from keeping ahead of the overall momentum. For example, whenever she thought she’d gotten the shape of the agreement locked in, and just how badly Mel was paying her ‘in kind’, Mel would lock in on provision bonuses, where anything Vi found was hers to either sell on, keep or modify for possible research outcomes. That distracted her, made her wonder what exactly she was signing on for.

And yet, Mel was just slippery enough for the whole story to slide away from any consideration. It was fucking infuriating.

After as much intellectual jousting and credit mathematics as Vi could stand, finally, they settled. Even as Mel lifted the data pad to transfer her a deposit of credits and an employment agreement as well as to communicate authority for purchase up to a rather high-cost level plus discount with Sevika’s requisition officer, Vi somehow still felt like she had lost the entire exchange.

“Well, that was fun,” Mel commented, with a bright smile.

“I’m glad you through so.” Vi was sarcastic. Thinking back on the deal, she was absolutely getting screwed. She just didn’t know where or how.

“Oh, come now.” There was a bright smile from the Asari as she stood and offered Vi a hand. “You absolutely had me on the ropes regarding your lodgings. A private bunk was not something I had even thought to consider in your employment.”

Begrudgingly, Vi snorted, taking the offered hand and allowing herself to be pulled to her feet.

“Most people don’t think about the off-duty hours. Personally, I believe privacy goes a long way.”

Mel nodded, letting Vi’s hand go. Looking back at the ship, she sighed.

“Explaining that part of the deal to Sevika is going to give me a headache for a week.” Mel rubbed her face then smiled. “A room ‘with a view’ will be somewhat of a sticking point. Luckily, I have taken a liking to your brashness.”

Vi smirked. So, she had given as good as she’d gotten, at least in some capacity.

“Consider it a fair rechange for making me fuckin’ take half of what was a ridiculous deposit in reclaimed gear.”

“Reclaimed?” The tone of Mel’s reply was outraged. “I will have you know that no employee of mine will use something merely reclaimed. You absolute scoundrel!”

Again, Vi found herself laughing and again she hated it. This Asari was about to lock her on a ship with someone who threatened to skin her alive the next time they met and yet, she felt herself thawing slightly. She now understood exactly why Caitlyn had gotten so exasperated by her ‘benefactor’.

Ah, Caitlyn…

Now that was a true value add. Vi wasn’t a fool. She knew that the now-ex C-Sec officer was incredibly reactive to her presence. Her antics in the elevator aside, Vi could tell there was something going on between them, some sort of magnetism. She had seen Caitlyn’s fury at Mel pulling some sort of scheme on them both. There was a sense of justice there, some bitterness and resentment towards the machinations of the Asari. But she also cared. Or at least seemed to. Her outrage at any prospect of Vi being taken advantage of didn’t feel righteous or self-indulgent. It felt genuine. Like this woman would rather burn a relationship that had seen some shit than let Vi be taken advantage of.

Adding that information into the mental dossier Vi was developing on the sexy veteran with legs for days was helping to flesh out a very interesting picture. While Kirramman’s reputation with Vi’s contacts was somewhat torn between “Alliance unspoken hero” and “turncoat crooked coward”, the woman in question seemed far more complex.

“So, as for onboarding…”

Rudely, Mel’s voice interrupted Vi’s thoughts. The mercenary pushed her fixation on Caitlyn down, hoping the Asari hadn’t noticed her reverie. However, if Mel was aware of Vi’s inner thoughts, she clearly kept them to herself:

“Sevika provided the same checklist for you as Caitlyn, but there were some other… considerations for you to abide by.”

Vi’s heart sank somewhat. Of course, Sevika would have some conditions to her presence. Mel handed her a data pad.

“Here are the details for the general checklist, should you need the reminder, but the gist of it is as follows: All crew external to the team I have hired directly report to Sevika and Sevika alone. Her quarters are off limits, and any other crewmate’s personal items, locker, bunk or space must be respected. You are not to interfere with any crew member in the course of their duty, nor to undermine any command given by Sevika regarding the operation of the Sinestrus.”

Mel paused, giving Vi a chance to respond. When no reply came, she continued:

“Weapons and any loadout must be stored in the hanger, in a locker coded specifically and genetically to you. You will undergo decontamination processes when boarding the Sinestrus, no matter your activities. Should there be evacuation procedures activated, you are to ensure that you follow all orders given by the Sinestrus’s crew.”

She paused again and gave Vi a big smile. Vi groaned.

Here it comes…

“Now we get to the Vi specific ones and please forgive me, I am quoting these verbatim.” If Vi looked carefully, she was sure she could see a rising mirthful glee in Mel’s face as she spoke. “Given your lack of understanding of how engines work and when it is appropriate to interfere with them, you are forbidden to enter the engine room under any circumstance, nor are you permitted to interfere with any panel, mechanism or moving item on board the Sinestrus.”

Ignoring Vi’s noise of outrage, Mel continued, her tone growing more amused.

“Furthermore, as you have a clear lack of control or responsibility over your abilities, any use of biotics will result in immediate ejection off the frigate, no matter what star system we are in. Finally, in acknowledgement of your disregard for the purpose of the chain of command, you are to remain conscious of your conduct towards Sevika, demonstrate adequate respect to her as captain of this vessel and do not undermine her authority and decisions, past, present and future.”

“So, don’t mess with the hardware, don’t practice my shockwaves down the centre of the bridge, and don’t mouth off to the angry Turian,” Vi interjected. “Got it. Did you really have to add the bits at the start of each of those?”

Mel widened her eyes innocently.

“I was merely providing a verbatim recount of what was expressed to me under no uncertain terms. Surely you understand the importance of clear communication?”

Vi’s response was a deadpan look, which caused Mel to laugh delightedly.

“Oh, come now, you understand. Sevika is not the type to forget and forgive, but she knows as well as you do deep down you made a call, and she cannot help but respect it.”

“Is that why she agreed to let you hire me?” Vi said, scathingly. “Her respect for what I did to her arm?”

Mel snorted and began to walk towards the gangplank to the ship, Vi in tow.

“No, she did not agree to you being hired.”

“I knew it. Ok, spill Asari, how much did I cost you?”

“She recommended it.”

Vi froze in her tracks. Seemed like her whole day was full of impossible surprises but this one was fucking huge.

“What?!”

Mel gave yet another annoying illusive Asari smile.

“She recommended you. While she did express some… reluctance to your presence on her ship, she made the argument that you and only you would suffice for this specific expedition to Omega,” Mel explained, in that same fuckin’ collegial tone she had used to negotiate with Vi. “She did not provide any specific rationale as to why but was incredibly emphatic that you and only you could help us find what we are looking for. Given her expertise, I deferred the decision and built my strategy around acquiring yourself and Caitlyn immediately.”

Vi immediately thought hard. If Sevika recommended her, and with Sevika knowing quite a lot about the movers and shakers on Omega…

The realisation of exactly what Sevika might know and why she might hide it from Mel hit Vi like a fucking concussion round.

That fucking bitch.

She couldn’t let her discontent show. Nope. Not until she knew exactly what the Asari and Caitlyn were chasing, and who was involved. Not until she was back on Omega and had some sort of understanding of how much everyone knew and, more importantly, how much keeping certain things quiet would cost her.

Vi’s mind worked quickly. She just hoped that fuckin’ Aria wasn’t involved with this whole expedition. If so, there would absolutely be blood, and she was determined that it didn’t belong to her or anyone she cared about.

Despite Vi’s best efforts, Mel appeared to notice the discontent.

“Is there something the matter? I thought you would be pleasantly surprised that your reputation is so good, even someone who hates you can admit you are needed.”

With a quick adjustment, Vi played off her apprehension as something else.

“Yeah, it’s fine,” she responded with a weak smile. “Just shocked. It’s not every day that someone who you kind of fucked over lands you a major gig, especially lead by a mysterious Asari and her hottie military-trained friend.”

Mel smirked.

“Well, I am glad you think of Caitlyn as my friend. I am sure she does not share the same feelings towards me. But I will tell her just how attractive you think she is.”

Vi leaned into the slight mockery – as her old instructor at the Alliance Academy said, any cover is good cover.

“Hey, sure, you can play wing woman, just so long as you’re not cutting my grass.”

That one made Mel bark out a very loud laugh that if Vi listened to closely enough, there was no small measure of bitterness.

“Vi, I can promise, I am no competition.” Yep. Definitely bitterness. “I am sure Caitlyn’s feelings towards me, while complex, leans more towards shooting me than embracing me.”

They continued towards the gangplank. Vi knew she had to keep the banter up, had to put space between her realisation and Mel’s reflection to ensure the Asari did not return to the topic of Sevika’s recommendation.

“Got some history with the investigator then?” Vi prodded, playfully as the Sinestrus’s doors whooshed open and they entered the airlock. It was definitely Turian in design, sharp and reliable corners, strong lines. The ground was illuminated in light strips, with a dim orange above them to almost prepare them for the dullness of the inside of the Frigate.

Mel scoffed and paused. The ship’s Virtual Intelligence chimed in, a male Turian sounding rendering of a voice:

“Decontamination in progress.”

“It is not really my story to tell,” Mel explained as they were washed in a light mist of decontaminant. “But know that sometimes, politics and conflict can come between any number of people, no matter how many times they have saved each other’s lives.”

“Huh, sounds intense,” Vi responded. “So, who fucked over who?”

“It is more complicated than that,” Mel continued, her expression distant. “But I am sure if you asked Caitlyn, she would say that I fucked her over.”

The mist was replaced by a gentle sense of air being pumped into the space. Vi could not tell if it was drying off the contaminant, acclimatising them to the ship environment or both.

“Oh yeah?” Vi continued to dig. “Normally I find that the person who says it’s complicated usually is the person did the fucking over.”

Mel gave the closest to a disgusted snort that Vi had heard any Asari give. She could tell this line of enquiry made Mel very uncomfortable and she was going to take full advantage of it.

“You are normally right,” Mel’s tone was so brittle, it could shatter. “If you do not account for the fact that Biotic Commandos are not the top of the Asari command chain. Especially on Noxus. And that is all I will offer you as of this moment.”

The inner doors opened, revealing the bridge of the Sinestrus. It was, again, typically Turian, with a squareness and authority to the stations. Surprisingly sitting behind the helm of the ship, was a Salarian wearing maroon and brown coveralls, with an orange interface across his eyes. There was a large scar down the centre between his horns, curving around one eye down to his chin. He glanced up and smirked.

“Hey Mel, looks like you’ve got the last of your waifs and strays assembled,” he joked. Mel ignored him and attempted to make a polite introduction:

“Vi, this is Sevika’s pilot, Wehaf Raelji-“

“C’mon, Mel, introduce me properly,” the pilot interrupted, turning in his chair.

“Who for obvious and unfunny reasons prefers to be called Scar.”

The Salarian pointed a finger on each hand at the two of them, and Vi realised he was giving finger guns.

“You got it!” Scar said with a wink. “Who is this?”

“I’m Vi,” she jumped in before Mel could give any further details. “Mercenary.”

Scar whistled low under his breath.

“Oh boy, she actually managed to get you to come aboard? You must be either incredibly greedy or incredibly stupid.”

Instead of responding to the Salarian’s jab, Vi decided to observe his set up. She noticed that his cockpit was adorned with small toys and little knickknacks. His seat also appeared to be on tracks, to allow him to manoeuvre between a few different positions to control different parts of the ship.

Such a set up was only used by incredibly experienced pilots, often from smuggling backgrounds where such flexibility was required by small crews running big ships. Vi immediately clocked Scar as someone who had spent a lot of time running to, from, and away from different places.

He would have spent a lot of time in the same space as the Omega Smugglers. And that particular set-up with those kinds of rails was very familiar...

This was not good.

Mel stepped into the silence.

“I do not know, she was rather excellent at ensuring she would be well taken care of.” If Vi thought about it, Mel really couldn’t let the negotiations go, even if she did have things mostly her way. “Could you please ask Sevika to come to my quarters? I would like to get any awkwardness cleared, especially as Vi has managed to claim a better bunk than I was previously willing to give her.”

Scar stared at Mel for a moment, before giving another smirk.

“Damn, Asari, you do choose to live dangerously. Alright. Sevika is currently checking out the most recent requisitions batch. I’ll buzz her. Have fun Vi, catch you in the mess later!”

He turned back to his console as Mel and Vi continued through the bridge to the Command Information Centre. Again, as typically Turian as it could be, the captain’s position was elevated above the map of the galaxy. Next to the navigation computer off stood a older gold-coloured Turian with green markings and a long fringe. He wore light Turian armour in maroon. He looked up, obviously hearing their feet approach.

“Miss Medarda, you have returned,” his voice was very low, even for a Turian. “And you bring aboard your last recruit, I see.”

Mel smiled charmingly.

“Vi, this is Lucanius Saberian, Navigator.”

“And veteran of the Relay 314 incident,” the Turian smoothly interjected, eyes on Vi.

“Do you introduce yourself with that to every human you meet, or just me?” she countered.

The Turian shrugged, mandibles flaring in a grin.

“I find it helps resolve any future tensions. I can promise you, I don’t think I killed anyone related to you.”

Vi laughed, despite herself. The Turian had this air of charm around him that only those who had seen the pits of conflict had – the one that reminded those around them not to sweat the small stuff.

“Probably not,” she bantered back. “Unless you also served with a bunch of pirates who raided Outpost: Zaun.”

Lucanius chuckled in response and Vi felt herself warming up to the Turian even more.

“Absolutely not. I dislike anyone who preys on those who cannot fight back. It’s why work with Sevika is so satisfying. She brings in big prey.”

His expression grew playfully pointed and again Vi was reminded that she was on Sevika’s turf and that Sevika did not like her.

“Yeah, thanks for that, I had almost forgotten Sevika’s capabilities.” Vi grimaced. “Almost.”

“Well, happy to be of assistance.” Lucanius turned back to his station, clearly returning to his course plots. “Please do let me know how your first meeting in a while goes, if you survive.”

Feeling the dismissal, Vi looked back to Mel, who had the biggest shiteating grin she had ever seen on the Asari. As they made their way over to the elevator at the back of the CIC between the doors labelled ‘Laboratory’ and ‘Armoury’, Vi sighed and rubbed her face.

“Does everyone on this bucket know Sevika and my history?” she wondered aloud to Mel.

“You know crews, Vi,” Mel replied, with absolutely no genuine sympathy in her voice. “They love gossip.”

Patting Vi on the arm as they entered the elevator, Mel’s expression grew even more wicked:

“It will be ok. You are about to go through the mess to my office. I’m sure you will find some sympathy there. Maybe even one, and I quote, hottie military-trained friend?”

Vi felt herself flush, the back of her neck growing hot. It was ok when she said it. Hearing Mel put a whole degenerate spin on the words she was throwing back at Vi made her skin feel itchy.

“You’re not going to let that one go, are you, Asari?” she commented, rubbing the back of her neck.

“Absolutely not.” The reply was instant. “There is a reason why there is no fraternisation policy on any of my crews. You can all do whatever you desire when off the clock.”

With that stunning comment worming its way into Vi’s brain, the elevator doors opened, and Mel stepped out, leaving Vi to gather herself before encountering more strangers and possibly Caitlyn.

Unlike a military vessel, the frigate had a smaller central mess with a long set of bunks for the crew stretching down towards a room labelled ‘Gunnery’. Where normally there would have been more bunks along starboard and port, the sides had been closed in with a set of doors, obviously for private rooms, with the small rooms closest to the bow labelled as ‘Washrooms’. Two were labelled for dextro-amino and two labelled for levo-amino. Clearly, Sevika was aware of the idiosyncrasies of having a mixed crew.

There was also a Medbay on one side, and a room labelled ‘Communications’ on the other. The styling was again, typically Turian, with strong angles, effective lighting strips and little décor. However, the couches in the area and the central mess table looked comfortable and sturdy and the kitchen was impeccably decked out, with a neon sign above the range reading Jericho’s Kitchen: Levo or Dextro. either way, you'll get fed.

None of this mattered to Vi though once she took it in, because Caitlyn was lounging on one of the couches, her head thrown back in laughter at whatever the incredibly handsome human man across from her had said. Her blue-black hair was now tied up, but she was wearing that same god damn tight as fuck black t-shirt, legs still clad in blue combat BDUs, feet still in combat boots.

How the fuck could something so simple look so fucking hot on someone, Vi would never know. All she could do was stare and try not to be obvious about it. So, instead of allowing her interest to overcome her abilities, Vi decided to size up the competition:

The man was tall, and muscular, with light brown skin, hazel eyes and black hair. He was slightly unshaven, but in that planned ‘attractive’ fashion, not out of any seeming neglect. He wore, of all things, a white and grey vest, over a maroon shirt and red tie. His suit pants were grey, and his feet wore black reinforced loafers.

Vi tried not to scoff. Pretty Boy was an understatement. The guy looked like he spent more money on his hair that Vi did on replacing ammo and grenades for a mission.

Mel, either ignoring or ignorant of the gay panic and drama Vi had found herself in, approached Caitlyn and Pretty Boy.

“Ah Caitlyn, I see you’ve met Jayce Talis before?” she said, lightly. Caitlyn looked up.

“Huh?” Vi saw the slight surprise on Caitlyn’s face and tried not to sigh. The woman was just too fucking cute. “Oh. Yes. Jayce did his internship at my father’s company. You know, Piltover Corporation in London, Earth? His work on omnitool functionality development had my father salivating to hire him full time.”

“Yes, but I found myself more interested in offering my services to the Alliance, much like Sprout here.” Jayce’s voice was charming and full of ease. “We had met at Piltover, and when she enlisted and I had worked my way onto some research teams, I would try to catch up with her whenever she had shore leave and I was allowed out of the lab.”

Vi snorted in disgust. Her nickname for Caitlyn was so much better that fucking ‘Sprout’.

The noise got Caitlyn’s attention, and her eyes locked to Vi’s. The sensation in Vi’s lower abdomen was absolutely unmistakable. Being observed by this woman was fucking hot. Not one to back down, Vi threw Caitlyn a wink and a smirk and the tips of Caitlyn’s ears turned red. She saw Caitlyn’s jaw tighten, an almost imperceivable flick of those bright blue eyes down to Vi’s lips then back up. Vi felt paralysed in that same gaze that had looked right through her.

Ignoring the avalanche of female flirting occurring in the background, Pretty Boy continued his story:

“I actually lost track of Caitlyn after she was honourably discharged. Terrible stuff, really. With her service record, they should have promoted her,” Jayce’s tone seemed genuine, even though Vi didn’t trust him as far as she could throw him. “It actually led to me leaving the Alliance and setting up Talis Industries. Of course, after a few years of building up our resources and assets, Mel commissioned me for this mission and boom, here we are.”

“You left the Alliance because of me?” Caitlyn’s broke Vi’s gaze in shock, turning back towards Jayce. “I didn’t know that.”

He nodded, while a beeping came from his wrist. Lifting a hand, his omnitool appeared. Vi noticed it had a more gold light than the orange of a standard issue. Clearly, Pretty Boy liked his fucking bling. As Jayce tapped away at the tool, he continued the conversation:

“I very well couldn’t stand by and let them do that to you, Cait. I know you. I know you were no coward, turncoat or alien sympathiser,” he said absentmindedly, before pausing, looking at Mel. “No offense Mel.”

“None taken,” came the easy reply.

Jayce smiled graciously and tapped part of his omnitool with finality. The hook of gold metal around his ear suddenly lit up with a blue light and Jayce listening, before smiling and standing.

“I do apologise, but Heim has told me our latest experiment is returning some extraordinary results, and you know how risky it is to keep a Krogan waiting,” he commented lightly. “Please excuse me. I’m sure I will catch up with you all later and better meet your acquaintance.”

Pretty Boy positively sauntered towards the elevator and Vi felt herself hating him. That level of ease had to hide a totally indulged rich kid nerd. He hadn’t even asked her what her name was, too busy reminiscing with Caitlyn about the good old days.

Mel, of course, broke any silence that Vi might have been using as a shield for how dumb she thought Jayce was and definitely not to stew in jealousy.

“Well, I really do need to improve my dossier collection. I did not know you two had already met.”

Caitlyn looked sharply at Mel.

“Probably good we find this out now, so I don’t go telling him your part in the Asari Plot that hung me out to dry.”

“You will tell him nothing." Again, Mel's reply was easy and Vi saw Caitlyn's face close off. "You know that is counterintuitive to what we are aiming to do, to foment distrust in the team. Plus…”

Mel’s eyes slid back to the elevator.

“I would like to see if his muscles are not just for show and doing that will make it so much harder for him to lay with me.”

Caitlyn choked on her breath and Vi found herself laughing.

“You and Jayce?” she stammered out.

Mel shrugged with a smirk, looking pointedly between Caitlyn and Vi.

“These kinds of missions can get lonely. It is always good to keep one’s options open.”

Vi flushed. Scratch that, she was going to join Caitlyn’s firing squad and shoot the shit out of Mel. From the frozen look on Caitlyn’s face, she was sure recruitment would be easy.

Mel, to her credit, pushed the comment no further.

“So, as you can see, Caitlyn, Vi and I have come to an agreement. There are just a few little last minute details that we need to-“

The elevator doors suddenly opened to a tall copper coloured Turian Woman with dark red clan markings. For a Turian woman, her mandibles and features were strong, and her build much more solid than her birdlike compatriots. She wore brown and bronze medium Turian Armour.

One of her arms was clearly a prosthetic made of a combination of metal, wires and tubing, and plated in a bronze anodized material. The other was holding heavy pistol pointed at Vi.

Vi, to her credit, didn’t flinch. This was not the first time that she had a run in down the barrel of this particular gun, wielded by this particular brand of pissed off Turian.

“Oh hey, Sevika,” she commented, brightly. “Glad to see you’re intact.”

Sevika, to her credit, ignored her.

“You and you.” She pointed the gun to Vi and Mel. “In Mel’s office. Now.”

“Which one is Mel’s office?” Vi wanted to know, keeping an air of innocence.

“It’s the one labelled Communications.” Mel offered, helpfully. She too didn’t seem overly concerned by being held at the end of the gun, although it had not flicked back to her more than the one time.

“Glad you got that cleared up, Vi,” the Turian gritted out. “Now move. I want to know what the fuck was agreed to and how the fuck you intend to stay on my ship without me throwing your slug riddled body out of my fucking airlock.”

“Wasn’t I hired under your recommendation?” Vi really couldn’t help herself. If there was a button to press, she really needed to press it.

Sevika closed her eyes and inhaled. There was a long pause. Then she lowered the gun, although kept it in her claw.

“Just because we need your skills doesn’t mean I need to make your stay pleasant. Bear that shit in mind, Vi,” Sevika was no less pissed off, just less violent. Knowing what she knew about the Turian, Vi took this as a good sign. “Now fucking move. Before I change my mind.”

Chapter Text

After Sevika frogmarched Vi and Mel into Mel’s office and the door slid shut with a sense of finality, whatever strange tension that was in the air dissipated. It left Caitlyn feeling oddly out of sorts, like she was emotionally half underwater, half falling through the air. She rested her chin in her hands with a sigh, leaning her elbows on her knees.

It was not even twelve hours ago when she was sitting in the Dark Star Lounge attempting to drown her sorrows only to be pulled from the misery of her failure by someone from a past she’d thought she’d left behind. Now, she was sitting in the mess of a custom Turian Frigate, with her own private quarters, access to her custom weaponry, and a budget to outfit herself with the finest equipment Mel’s contacts could source. The rest of the crew that she had met (a Salarian who talked too much, and an older Turian who immediately clocked her as ex-Alliance) seemed nice, but she knew Sevika’s crew was made up of more than just two others and she wondered if all of them would be as accepting of her presence.

She had run into Jayce when she made her way to the quarters level and the mess, where he had been in the process of assigning her room using that ostentatiously blingy omnitool of his. Immediately, Jayce had pulled her into a friendly hug that made her feel that shadow of loneliness that had plagued her since she’d left the Alliance. After explaining that his company had been commissioned to assist in management of personalised equipment, experimental technology design and building a containment protocol for the artifact, he had pulled her over to the couches to catch up. When she asked him where everyone else was, Jayce had told her that the rest of the crew was in the hanger, unloading requisitions, or still on the Citadel finalising last minute business.

She hoped they wouldn’t take too long. C-Sec might not have jurisdiction over Sevika’s ship so long as they believed Mel was still with the Noxian Commandos, but all it would take is one FTL message and the gig would be up.

Jayce and Caitlyn had been reminiscing on the last shore leave she took before her deployment when Mel and Vi had entered the conversation. Aside from the discontent she still felt at Mel for whatever strategy she’d pulled to get Vi on board, she had to admit that the Asari might have some idea how to pick the right talent for the job if she’d gotten Jayce Talis to sign on. Jayce had been his normal somewhat absent-minded self, greeting Mel before getting lost in the story of how Caitlyn and he had become friends.

The man in question had just finished filling Mel and Vi in on that brief overview of their history when Vi had grunted, seemingly in response. Not one to tolerate rudeness, Caitlyn immediately went to shoot Vi a look only to find herself falling into yet another tension-filled moment. She first noticed Vi’s lips, curled in a parted sneer, the smallest glimpse of her white teeth present, arms folded across her chest, strands of muscle like cords of steel wrapping around her forearms. Her eyes widened when she caught Caitlyn’s gaze. There was a tight pause, a pull deep in Caitlyn’s gut, made only worse when Vi’s sneer shifted into a smirk. The mercenary even had the audacity to thrown in a wink, a gesture that made Caitlyn burn.

She wanted to wipe that fucking smirk off her face, wanted to shatter the bravado that had so far made her feel unbalanced. She’d almost had enough of being on the defensive with this woman who seemed determined to compromise her integrity. She thought of how she could take back control, what comment, what snapped order, whether she could stand and use her height...

From there, the thoughts became entirely less appropriate. She thought about how she could pin Vi against a couch, a bed, a wall, anything, press her lips to the side of that tattooed neck, scraping teeth along the skin, pulling on that messy pink hair. Lean up to whisper in her ear to shut the fuck up and just fuck her.

On impulse, she felt her eyes flick down to Vi’s lips, where the smirk slowly faded. She could have sworn they parted slightly with a small gasp. She looked once more into dilated eyes and noticed a high flush on behind a cheekbone tattooed with that two-letter name. She wondered how the syllables would taste on her lips as she moaned...

Then Jayce had dropped the bomb on her about his own exit from the Alliance, and the tension between them shattered like glass:

He had left because of her?

As the arousal faded, the guilt had been immediate. Jayce might be a successful owner of an engineering company and research centre, but Caitlyn was sure the journey from start-up to now was not a pleasant nor easy one. From her family, she knew that human-led enterprises were not considered as reliable as more established ones in the galaxy, and based on how Jayce spoke, his company was considered more galactic based than Sol system-housed. The set-up, negotiations, blood sweat and tears that he would have had to undergo would have been immense.

And he did that for her? Out of respect for her ‘honourable discharge’? He didn’t even know what had happened, how many mistakes she made, how many of the ‘mistakes’ were calculated losses...

How far she let herself get hung out to dry so Mel could be protected only to have Mel turn her back when the chips were down.

Fuck, Mel was such pain point. The dynamic between the two of them had made Caitlyn leery – Mel had all the leverage over the people involved in her team, but she was supposed to lead, to be the mouth when Mel was the brain. It was an intimidating thought, after her previous experiences in command had left her feeling completely taken advantage of. She didn’t want it to happen again, wanted to make something of this opportunity, to do the right thing. She had to acknowledge that Mel had made her an offer she couldn’t or did not want to refuse. Something real to dig her teeth into, a chance to show the galaxy that she wasn’t a fuck-up or a soft, entitled coward.

There was also the fact that she was going against the Asari Republics, specifically, Noxus. The thought of undermining Matriarch Ambessa while possibly saving the Asari Republics ass was indeed satisfying. Caitlyn regarded herself as not spiteful, but there was a level of justice in getting one back against the Noxian Matriarch that she found almost irresistible.

That, in of itself was unsettling. It didn’t read to good intentions, to helping save the galaxy from something dangerous, when she found glee in shoving her competence down people’s throat, council, asari, C-Sec or otherwise. She was aware of humanity’s reputation for being overly entitled, for being the new kids on the block with something to prove.

Executor Pallin’s words rang in her mind:

You humans. Always far too ambitious for your own good

She refused to prove him right.

Enough.

She had to stop this. This cycle of self-destructive guilt. If she was going to take the role Mel had assigned her, she’d better get her shit together. Sitting back on the couch, she took a moment to gather herself, to reset the structures in her mind that allowed for her to make more objective decisions, before standing, intending to put some of her better intentions into action.

As Caitlyn stretched, the door to the medbay opened and a quarian entered. His environmental suit was black, with its fabric being dark brown with a white pattern of stripes. He was slim and slight for a quarian, although his shoulders were still relatively broad. Noticing Caitlyn, the quarian froze and to her surprise, a ripple of biotic energy covered him, before he shook himself and calmed, the energy dissipating.

“Keelah se’lai, I did not realise there was anyone else present,” he exclaimed, placing one of his hands to his chest in relief. His voice was pleasantly accented through his respirator. Resettling himself, he offered Caitlyn a hand. “I am Viktor’Caalan nar Hidor, medical researcher for Mel Medarda’s expedition.”

“Caitlyn Kirramman, squad leader and investigator.” Caitlyn took the quarian’s hand and shook it. His grip was firm but not overpowering. “I didn’t know there were biotic quarians.”

Viktor shrugged, looking entirely unbothered by what was probably a very common question. He coughed gently, before continuing.

“We are very rare. My birth was… an unfortunate series of circumstances for the Flotilla,” Viktor explained. “While I was exposed to enough eezo to manifest my natural capabilities to a mild degree, it did cause some ongoing illnesses that I still am working on managing to this day.”

He paused, before moving to the mess to open one of the cupboards labelled ‘dextro-amino’ and begin rummaging inside.

“In fact, it’s the focus of my Pilgrimage – finding ways to improve quarian immunity to prevent similar issues and improve conditions for anyone like me.”

“An admirable goal,” Caitlyn responded, watching Viktor pull out what looked like a plastic bag of blue liquid, and a metal straw inside shrink wrap labelled STERILE along the side. Viktor, noticing her interest, tilted his head to the side, almost abashedly.

“I do need to keep my sustenance up to assist in metabolising some of the medications I take,” he continued apologetically, putting his supplies into a large pouch on his hip. “Jericho has been very understanding with the requisition list.”

“Not at all,” Caitlyn reassured him. “Please let me know if you’re ever running low, or if I can help in any other way.”

Viktor hummed in appreciation. After ensuring the snacks were secured, Viktor returned his attention to Caitlyn and inclined his head.

“In turn, should you have any need to consult with a medical professional, please do not hesitate to come into the medical bay.” With a chuckle at Caitlyn’s surprised expression, Viktor continued: “My Pilgrimage has been longer than the average quarian. I have no need to return and be a burden on the Flotilla, so I have had the time to develop my expertise. Plus, I do have assistants when things need to get a bit… sticky.”

On that, the quarian inclined his head again and wandered back to the medbay. Caitlyn noticed that he moved slower than she would expect, as if his joints pained him. As the doors closed behind him, she pondered how a quarian could treat anyone without exposure that would cause a deadly reaction. Perhaps Viktor worked using surgical machines? If that was the case, he would also have to be an excellent engineer as well as a medical professional. Clearly, the quarian was incredibly intelligent and driven. She wondered where Mel had found him. It really was beyond time for her to get into the dossiers Mel promised to provide her.

Speaking of Mel, she wondered how much longer Sevika was going to keep her occupied. While Caitlyn had her room assigned, she wanted to ask if she could requisition some funds for a holographic pinboard to arrange her thoughts and get an overview of the situation. Caitlyn was a very visual person, and she found being able to move the parts around helped with identifying patterns, actions and consequences.

However, asking Sevika seemed like a perfect way to getting throw into a storage crate in the hanger, so perhaps Mel was the better option.

As if her thoughts had summoned the turian, the door to Mel’s office opened, revealing the captain. Sevika stomped out grumpily, omnitool already lit up on her prosthetic arm. She walked to starboard and raised a hand on a door with a red holo lock. There was a moment of beeping as the lock turned, before it became yellow. Spinning around, Sevika’s mandibles flared in anger:

“There. A starboard cabin with the biggest fucking view of the universe through the observation window, its own ensuite and a fucking couch and bar. Happy?”

“Does it come with a queen-sized bunk?” came Vi’s voice, feigning politeness.

Turning, Caitlyn noticed Vi casually saunter out of the office and walk to the recreation area to rest her hip on the couch, her eyes quickly flickering to Caitlyn before returning to Sevika. Caitlyn thought she heard a muffled very Mel-sounding chuckle as the Asari propped herself against the doorway of the office, watching the incident as if it was some sort of broadcast drama.

Sevika, however, looked like she wanted to throw an incendiary grenade at Vi, then piss on the ashes.

“You are pressing your luck, Vi,” she gritted out, her jaw clenched.

“It was a fair question.” Butter wouldn’t melt in Vi’s tone. Caitlyn found herself trying not to smile at the mercenary’s antics as she lean a shoulder on the nearby corner of the mess. “I need a place to sleep, after all.”

“Of course there’s a queen-sized bed,” Sevika snapped. “This is one of the cabins we use when we’re transporting VIPs between sectors. What the fuck do you take me for, an amateur?”

Her claw hovered over the heavy pistol at her side. Caitlyn felt the shift in the air and realised, Vi had absolutely pushed Sevika to the point of violence. She glanced at Mel, who, to her surprised, looked completely unperturbed.

What the hell had they discussed in there?

Caitlyn’s gaze then returned to Vi, who appeared to be weighing up her options. Finally, she let herself fall slowly back onto her hands, lounging even more casually back on the edge of the couch, a slow smirk spreading across her face as one boot started to swing casually. Caitlyn, to her horror, found her eyes tracing the woman’s torso, following the lines of the tattoos, across her breasts and then down her front.

And of course, Vi noticed her noticing. She shot Caitlyn a heated look, one that pooled warmth between her legs. Caitlyn refused to budge, feeling her jaw tighten. If she was stuck with Vi, there was no way she was going to allow this insanely attractive woman unsettle her more than she already had. Instead, she put all her want and desire to get Vi to shut up into the front of her mind. She allowed herself to show a small glimpse of what she wanted.

For the first time that Caitlyn could remember, Vi was the one to break the moment.

“Thanks, Sevika,” Vi said with a warm tone, her eyes twinkling wickedly as they moved from Caitlyn to the Captain. “Appreciate it.”

Holy fuck, Vi was going to get shot.

For a moment, Caitlyn through she saw Sevika look around the room, pausing on the medical bay, Mel’s face and finally Caitlyn herself, before returning to Vi. Surprisingly, Sevika’s shoulders lowered an inch although she still glowered at Vi, expression hard. Caitlyn realised that while the turian might dislike the mercenary immensely, there was a complicated history going on. She wondered if people felt the same around herself and Mel.

“Just remember who’s ship you’re on, Vi,” Sevika growled. “And stay the fuck out of the engine rooms. Now, you…”

She turned to Caitlyn, who found herself in the headlights of Sevika’s rather intense personality. In response, she felt her eyes go wide.

“Sorry for not being all polite and introducing myself.” The Turian didn’t sound even remotely apologetic. “You’re Caitlyn, I’m Captain Sevika. Don’t bother with the title. Did Jayce show you where your room was?”

Caitlyn nodded at the opposing door on the portside of the room. The brief tour that Jayce had given her showed what sounded like a smaller space than Vi’s, with a desk instead of a bar. But the bed was opposite the observation window, a view that Caitlyn had missed since being in C-Sec. The thought of going to sleep while watching the universe pass her by was indeed a welcome one.

“Good,” Sevika responded bluntly. “He can be trusted to follow a direct order. You’ll need that.”

“I’ve known Jayce for years,” Caitlyn explained. “It was lovely seeing him again.”

“Yeah, I’m sure. You read the rules?”

“Every one of them.”

“Well, maybe having you on board won’t be so bad.” Ignoring Vi’s mock gasp of outrage, Sevika folded her arms. “Is there anything else you need in your room to allow you to do your job?”

Caitlyn swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous. Sevika seemed to have an absolute hair trigger temper, especially about the sanctity of her ship. However, she really did need the ability to have a global view available to her, especially when she began to unravel multiple possible investigation opportunities.

“Actually, would it be possible for me to requisition a holo-board?” Caitlyn asked, trying not to sound timid. “I think I need a place to lay out all the information we have and figure out our next few moves once we’re on Omega. I do understand if it’s not something you’re comfortable with.”

“Done.” The reply was brisk. “The engine room team have one that they use for planning upgrades. Will that do?”

Caitlyn nodded, surprised. There was no pushback? No issue with modifying what looked like a rather locked-in space? Noticing Caitlyn’s shock, there was a slight flaring of mandibles in a turian smile as Sevika continued:

“We also have a meeting room in the front part of the hanger before you enter the loadout area. It has presentation capabilities. Would be a good place for briefings once you and Mel figure your shit out.”

Caitlyn was genuinely touched by how helpful Sevika was being. The Turian obviously noticed the appreciation and snorted.

“Don’t thank me – according to what was just discussed, you are the one responsible for making this asshole behave.” Sevika jerked her chin at Vi. “Way I see it, making your life easier in some ways might help you deal with her being a dangerous nuisance.”

“C’mon, Sevika, don’t make it sound like I’m some sort of terrorist.” Vi interjected, her eyes on Caitlyn as she pushed herself off the couch with a smile. She lowered her tone, allowing some rasp to enter. “I can be good under the right circumstances.”

A shiver went down Caitlyn’s spine. Holy shit, she needed to get a grip. Fighting to repress the pure animalistic attraction that she was obviously developing, Caitlyn put some steel in her voice as she responded:

“Good. Because if you’re not, it will not be Sevika launching you out of the airlock. It will be me.” She kept her voice slightly hard. “What we’re doing is of the upmost importance and I won’t have you jeopardising it.”

Vi sat up, lifting her hands in front of her, a strange expression on her face that Caitlyn could read as confusion mixed with regret.

“Hey, whoa, easy there, cupcake. How about you brief me first before giving me the dressing down?”

“Cupcake?” Sevika interjected and Caitlyn felt her face burn as Vi smirked.

“Yeah. Cause she’s sweet.”

“No calling me ‘cupcake’ in front of any of the crew or team,” Caitlyn snapped. “If you insist on keeping the ridiculous nickname, you at least owe me that modicum of respect.”

Vi’s expression softened. Caitlyn watched as the mercenary looked down, tapping her fingertips nervously on the front of her pants. Then, she ran a hand through her hair before rubbing the back of her neck, abashed.

“Look, I don’t mean to be disrespectful,” she started, and Caitlyn was horrified to hear guilt in her tone. “I just… it’s how I deal with all of this, ok? The whole ‘out-of-the-jail-cell-into-the-bucket-with-someone-who-hates-me’ is a lot to take, so y’know, I’m trying to find my sense of balance.”

She sighed, before stepping towards Caitlyn, lips twisted to the side in nervousness. Caitlyn stiffened, folding her arms. Vi exhaled again, paused, then walked slowly forwards again, closing their distance a little more.

“I honestly don’t mean anything by it. I promise, I’m professional.” Vi was earnest, genuine. “You won’t find a better merc for this job, so trust me when I say I’ll do what I say I’ll do.”

She honestly doesn’t mean anything by it?

The flirting was just diversion, stress relief. She could deal with that. It wouldn’t be the first time she’s had that kind of relationship with a colleague. Decidedly ignoring the sinking feeling in her chest, Caitlyn allowed herself to relax slightly.

“I guess I can understand the need for relieving pressure when you’re in risky situations,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. “Just please understand that in order for this to work, we need to cooperate, and I can’t have you causing mayhem when we’re trying to focus.”

Vi smiled and Caitlyn felt the ghost of a flutter in her stomach.

“I gotcha, Cait,” she said, gently. “Read you loud and clear.”

Caitlyn felt the world beneath her tilt slightly. Flirty banter was one thing, but the sincerity was an entirely different assault on her composure. Their eyes met again, and Caitlyn was the first to blink.

So much for being able to handle diversions.

Vi, to her credit made no further comment, seeming to wish to keep her word about respecting Caitlyn when the context called for it. There was a comfortable silence for a moment, before Vi switched back into the casual:

“Now, what exactly are we doing?”

“Please allow me to answer.” Mel made herself known again, pushing herself off the doorframe and gesturing for Vi to sit at the dining table. “I have been sitting on the amusement of knowing we signed Vi to an extended contract without giving her the full span of the mission ahead.”

Vi’s expression went through a myriad of moods. Confusion, contemplation, realisation and then anger. She stared blackly at Mel, and Caitlyn fought the urge to laugh. She’d been on the receiving end of this kind of high-level play before and she couldn’t help but find it amusing to watch from the outside.

“I was right,” Vi muttered, turning and throwing herself into a seat. “You fucking screwed me. What the fuck did I agree to?”

Mel laughed. She took a seat at the table as well and beckoned both Sevika and Caitlyn to join her.

“At least it was not a screwing of the deal, just of the context,” she said melodiously.

Sevika smirked, taking her seat.

“I have got to hear this,” she rumbled, her browplate lifting in amusement.

Vi rested her forehead on the table. If Caitlyn looked closely, she could see some actual tension in Vi’s muscled shoulders. Vi, not noticing the observance, huffed in exasperation, then sat upright, resting a chin in one hand.

“Alright, Mel, hit me with it.”

Mel pulled out the same small clamshell projection that she had shown Caitlyn in the Dark Star Lounge. She flipped it open with a thumb, allowing the small holographic image of the artifact appear again. Sliding it across the table towards Vi, Mel spoke.

“As Caitlyn and Sevika both already know, we are after a Prothean Artifact. It was stolen from Thessia-“

“Thessia?” Vi interjected in shock. “What kind of idiot ran a job on Thessia?”

“That’s part of what we are hoping to find out,” came the same calm reply. “As well as aiming to retrieve the artifact and returning it to its rightful custodians.”

Vi stared at the hologram, rubbing her chin, brows furrowed in thought. Then, she reached for the holographic projector and pulled it closer to her, eyes narrowing as she turned the device around. Caitlyn realised that Vi was taking the time to really get the object in her mind, turning it this way and that.

Maybe the mercenary had more information to offer. Perhaps she knew something about what it was…

“What even is this thing?” Vi finally asked.

Well, never mind then.

“That is the worst part of the whole situation,” Mel replied. “We do not know. It could be anything from a pretty battery to a reality destroying bomb.”

Vi’s inhale through her teeth was sharp enough to cut through a Krogan’s hide.

“So that’s not good.”

“Understatement of the millennia,” muttered Sevika.

 “Indeed, it is part of the reason why we are somewhat off the books in regard to our… approach,” Mel continued, talking past Sevika although she did shoot the Turian Captain a quick behave look. “Time is of the essence, at least in figuring out exactly the channels such an important, yet unknown artifact would be moved through.”

“Hence going to Omega and hiring me to make sure you had someone who knows the field.” Vi’s tone was bitter. “You realise, had I known what we were actually doing, I would have charged you three times what I did.”

Mel smirked.

“Rookie error to not investigate the scope and scale of the job before accepting.”

Vi snorted a short laugh.

“Huh, yeah, ok, Asari. You got me.”

She leaned back, folding her arms. Caitlyn again admired her build, how her muscles shifted underneath that smooth soft skin, the tattoos accentuating the natural lines of her anatomy.

“So, your plan is what, go to Omega, drop Caitlyn, me and you in Aria’s gauntlet of deals and ask around if anyone has seen a weird glowy tube?”

Mel smiled.

“Actually, Caitlyn is the person responsible for our movements on Omega.”

“Wait, me?” Caitlyn spoke up suddenly.

“Of course. Once you are all set up with your holo-board, I expect you will do one of your notorious deep dives into all the information I am about to transfer to you,” Mel explained, tone growing smug. “From there, I suspect you will formulate some sort of efficient plan to best allow us to ingratiate ourselves within Omega’s make-up to get some answers… With Vi’s help, of course.”

Caitlyn stared at Mel, eyes boggling. Mel’s smile took on a shade of smirk again.

“Let it never be said that I do not know how to recruit a team.”

Vi, to her credit, nudged Caitlyn.

“Cheer up, cupcake. Even though I’m being paid, I’m happy to help. Plus, I’m one of the rare people that Aria doesn’t want to throw into space the moment I set foot on Omega.”

“Clearly she doesn’t know you well enough,” Sevika commented, voice snide. The look Vi shot her was indeed heated and probably satisfying to see if you were trying to annoy the mercenary.

“I’ll have you know, she likes the fact I don’t call in the favours I’ve done for her,” Vi explained, defensively. “The key to staying alive on Omega is to stay in the black with Aria T’Loak.”

“It is a good connection to have,” Mel replied, eyes twinkling. “Especially as Sevika is banned on pain of death from setting foot anywhere where Blood Pack resides.”

“Urgh, you don’t have to remind me,” Sevika complained, standing up. “Be a reliable frigate operator, ask no questions, be discreet, none of that matters… But put a hole in one Blood Pack boss’s skull plate and you’re forbidden from your favourite watering holes.”

She looked down at Caitlyn. Caitlyn weirdly found herself liking the curmudgeonly Turian, although there was no way she would ever say it aloud. She suspected that such a complement would result in more mockery than it was worth.

“Kirramman, you seem like a decent sort. Don’t let this fucking asshole…” she nodded her head at Vi, who pressed a hand to her chest in mock offence. “… turn you into a problem and we’ll be fine. I’m going to go chase down that holo-board. You both go see the requisitions officer. We’ll be thrusters up the moment the rest of the crew return from shore leave.”

With that, the Turian walked towards the elevator and exited, clearly heading towards the engine rooms. Mel watched her leave, an incalculable expression on her face. Vi nudged Caitlyn again.

“Is the Asari always gonna look at everyone like an asset, or is that just me?”

Mel, to her credit, flushed slightly under her purple skin.

“My thoughts are none of your business, Vi. Should you not be listening to your captain and going to see the requisitions officer?”

The emphasis on the word ‘captain’ caused Vi to scowl once more. Caitlyn hid a smile. She really wished she was a fly on the wall in the conversation that happened in Mel’s office. Mel’s eyes slid over to her.

“You as well, Caitlyn.” Her tone was part mirthful, part emphatic. “We cannot have our esteemed squad leader going into the lion’s den dressed in civilian clothing. Plus, I am sure Jayce will have space in his laboratory for you to customise your omnitool for combat.”

Caitlyn couldn’t help but smile at that. She had so many ideas for features that would help her in dicey situations that C-Sec had no time for. Jayce would absolutely be the person to assist in exploring the capabilities of her equipment, especially to capitalise on her capabilities as a long-range combatant.

Vi, on the other hand, snorted in dismissal.

“And what have you got for me? Aside from the requisitions, do I get customised loadout?”

Mel leaned forwards, a huge smile on her face. Caitlyn watched Vi shrink back in the face of the forthrightness.

What an interesting thought…

“Vi,” Mel said, smile somehow growing. “Have you been into the hanger? You really should go into the hanger.”

Chapter Text

Yet again they were in an elevator.

And yet again, Vi was almost desperate to pin Caitlyn to the nearest surface and make out with her.

The feeling was becoming annoying. While she had downplayed the intensity of her thirst to calm Caitlyn’s anger at Vi’s seeming lack of respect, it didn’t really count for anything because Vi was an accomplished liar, and there was no way she wasn’t insanely attracted to the tall woman next to her.

The more time in each other’s proximity, the worse it was getting – the heated stares, the flickers of simmering frustration, the towering way that Caitlyn would stand up to her full height when pushed. Vi wanted to know just what happened when this incredibly contained and disciplined woman lost control. Whether she would be the kind of person to demand, or the kind to beg. How those long legs felt wrapped around her ears, how that low, throaty accent sounded when she moaned…

Vi wasn’t delusional. Yeah, they were in a rather shit situation, chasing down some unknown device that could potentially end the universe. Yeah, she was going back to Omega, back to a place just a little too close to a conflict she desperately wanted to avoid. Yeah, she was stuck on Sevika’s ship…

(Although that situation was resolving itself nicely – turns out Mel was an excellent mediator, and had arranged a bonus for Sevika to not murder Vi, with Vi promising not to break the rules)

… But the truth was that Vi had a queen-sized bunk with a dope bar, and all she was missing was good company.

For her part, though, Caitlyn seemed determined to keep their relationship professional:

“So, what requisitions do you require, and do you need some assistance in making your selection?”

The question was asked in that distant, super-efficient tone that Vi had realised was Caitlyn’s modus operandi when in mission-control mode. Vi smirked.

“All I care about is making sure my equipment is customisable to my style of engagement. You know how it is, gotta make sure whatever toys you use feel right, you know?”

Caitlyn did not grace her with an answer, instead appearing to nod slightly before going back to leaning casually against the elevator wall, arms folded, appearing lost in thought. It was disappointing – Vi was impressed by the subtext on that one.

The silence stretched on and with it, Vi’s anxiety rose. She hadn’t wanted Caitlyn to completely shut her down. In fact, she’d wanted the opposite, for the woman to start opening up, to continue the banter, to maybe even up the stakes like she did before, but with a sense of comfort and an understanding that Vi’s intentions weren’t to make her uncomfortable.

So, Vi being Vi, she decided to push it:

“It’s no fun bantering if only I’m involved, cupcake.”

She was going for casual, but it might have come out with a tinge of sulk. Caitlyn brows furrowed in confusion, before a high blush graced her cheeks and she chuckled.

“My apologies.” Her voice was genuine, as far as Vi could tell. “I absolutely missed that one. Was a little too focussed on thinking about my own loadout and less about your… prowess.”

“Wow, sheesh, obviously I need to do more to keep your attention, then,” Vi replied, feeling a smile spread across her face.

“Oh, please do,” Caitlyn snarked, although her expression was playful. “You know how useful that is to my role, to be constantly distracted by one of my team members amidst strategic planning and munitions management.”

Vi laughed at that. Constantly, hey?

“So, you’re not mad at me for disrespecting you? You sounded pretty angry back in front of Sevika and Mel.”

Caitlyn’s expression softened, those beautiful blue eyes warming. Vi’s heart caught in her throat. There was a different kind of feeling here, a softer fluttering in her stomach. She violently shoved it away. This situation was not the time to deal with something like that. Caitlyn didn’t appear to notice the struggle, which made it absolutely worse as her next words were completely authentic and sincere.

“My intention was to be emphatic,” she explained, pushing herself off the elevator wall, fidgeting nervously. “When it comes to operations in the field, I’ve seen enough things go wrong that I don’t wish to repeat in the future. For me, clear and concise communication keeps people alive. If that came across as overly aggressive…”

“No, no, hey it’s ok.” Vi couldn’t really take much more of this openness. “No harm. Just trying to figure out the working relationship, Cait.”

The woman hummed an acknowledgement.

“Fair enough. I do suppose this must be as new for you as it is for me.” At Vi’s confusion, Caitlyn continued. “You have to admit, the command structure of this operation is somewhat… unconventional.”

Vi frowned slightly.

“Well, sure, but I’m just thinking about it as a mercenary job with Mel as the client. Everything else is just the scope of the gig. But weren’t you a lieutenant?”

“I was, yes.” There was a hint of something warning in Caitlyn’s tone. Vi decided to continue the line of questioning anyway.

“So surely you’re more familiar with this kind of command structure, right?” she asked in a casual tone “Like, you could think of me like I’m one of your grunts. Wouldn’t that make you more comfortable?”

The air was suddenly filled with an unspeakable tension and Vi wondered if she had made a mistake in bringing up Caitlyn’s military history.  Again, their eyes met, and Vi saw a battle of sorts going on, flashes of pain, memory, reflection and guilt. Vi watched that poised structure Caitlyn cloaked herself with begin to shake, and fray, tightness in her shoulders, her hand suddenly shaking slightly.

What the fuck had Vi just uncovered?

Then, Caitlyn scoffed darkly and looked away. The tension that was present dissipated, leaving a hint of something unresolved.

“I don’t think you’d want to be an Alliance soldier under my command, Vi,” she said, voice soft with a hint of bitterness. “It doesn’t usually end well.”

The elevator slowed and the doors opened. Before Vi could say anything else, Caitlyn made a swift exit into the landing corridor and turned towards the starboard side of the ship, walking out of sight. Any tension that was left disappeared in her wake. Vi exhaled and took a moment to rebalance herself.

The level of guilt present in Caitlyn upon reminding her of her last command was surprising. While Vi was beginning to realise that the scuttlebutt she’d heard was not the whole story, surely there was some level of truth in the rumours. Caitlyn was working under the Noxian Asari again, right? She had violated the trust placed in her by C-Sec to break Vi out. There was definitely some behaviour that was absolutely called the woman’s integrity into question.

And yet, Caitlyn appeared to be deeply regretful about her time in command in the Alliance. Someone who was morally compromised surely wouldn’t care about the consequences that didn’t impact them. Hell, Vi had her own moments where she was what could be considered in the grey between good and bad choices. Being a mercenary often put her on the knife edge between doing what is right and what is needed.

Yet she had never felt the level of resentment for her past actions in her job that Caitlyn appeared to embody. And if that level of self-loathing was constant…

No wonder Caitlyn was desperate to keep a sense of control over any situation she was involved in.

Shaking off the moment once more, Vi moved on. The elevator opened to a door in front labelled Meeting Room, across a corridor that stretched across the level of the ship. It led to port and starboard, before hitting parallel T-junctions leading to the stern and bow with identical arrows pointing fore and aft. The arrow pointing to the bow was labelled Training and the one towards the stern was labelled Hanger.

The Sinestrus had its own training centre? Vi’s curiosity was piqued. Maybe, her armaments could wait. If this was what Mel was referring to when she told Vi to check out the hanger, surely it would be worth the procrastination…

She turned to walk towards the portside door on the bow side of the corridor, only to be interrupted by a clearing of the throat. Looking over her shoulder, she noticed Caitlyn’s head poking around the corner of the starboard turning towards aft.

“Are you coming?” Her tone was amused. “I too am interested in the training centre, but I feel we should sort out any future requisitions first, while we still have the chance.”

Damn it. The investigator was right. Toys first, play later.

“Sure thing, cupcake,” Vi said as she turned and sauntered towards her new team leader. “This is why they pay you the big bucks.”

Caitlyn snorted as they both fell into step walking towards the door to the hanger.

“I think they’re paying you more than me. Your quarters are nicer than mine, I bet.”

“Hey, come around for a drink sometime and find out.” For Vi, flirting with Caitlyn was becoming as easy as breathing. She was rewarded with a throaty laugh and a charming smile.

“I might just take you up on that sometime,” she responded, and Vi felt herself grow warm. The door in front of them opened to the hanger, which was a bustle of activity as crewmembers in varying coveralls and armour loaded crates of requisitions from the cargo lift on the port side of the ship. On the starboard side was a beaten-up transport shuttle, which was being checked over by a Turian with engineer garb. Clearly, Sevika was used to having to send crew planet or station side in places where landing the frigate would be impossible.

“Empathically: Hey, you two.” came a loud slow voice. “With authority: Stop gawking and grab a crate, we don’t have all day.”

Vi turned to see an elcor standing near the portside door back towards the meeting room, elevator and training centre. He was behind an equipment desk, with two orange terminals facing the hanger, and one blue console in front of him, surrounding by equipment crates. His garb was not the traditional blue of other elcor Vi had encountered. Instead, he wore a dark burnt orange and brown. Clearly Sevika had some sort of requirement for her crew to all dress in earthy colours…

“Sorry, we are not part of the crew,” Caitlyn responded, walking towards the desk. “We are looking for the requisitions officer to place a last-minute equipment order. We’re with Mel Medarda.”

“Dawning realisation: Ah. The Asari. My apologies,” came the reply. “Slightly annoyed: Sevika forgot to mention two of you were stopping by.”

“That seems unlike her,” Vi snarked. “Mind you, it is very last minute.”

“Disgruntled: And I am gathering that may be your fault. Knowledgably: You must be Vi.”

Vi felt herself bloom with a bit of pride. While she still smarted that she had been manipulated into this whole deal by both her greed and her unspoken connection to Omega, the ability to get on Sevika’s nerves was almost worth it.

“The very same. Nice to meet you…?”

“Politely: Benzo.” Benzo turned slightly towards Caitlyn. “Respectfully: and you are Caitlyn Kirramman. Jayce Talis forwarded some suggestions for your load out for you to peruse. You will find these on the terminal to your left.”

Caitlyn nodded her thanks and moved to the terminal. Vi noticed how her jaw tightened as she began to swipe through the information, eyes taking in all the details with rapid efficiency. Vi couldn’t help but appreciate the slight smile that spread across Caitlyn’s face when she saw something that she obviously liked, and the amused smirk when something was present that was some kind of inside joke Jayce had included…

God it should be illegal to be that pretty.

“Clears Throat.”

Vi shook herself out of her reverie.

“Oh yeah, uh, anything for me?”

“Mockingly: I only know that you are a menace who I should never leave unaccompanied around any machinery.”

“Hey!”

“Mirthful: my apologies. I saw an opportunity to build rapport.”

Vi snorted.

“Yeah, no wonder you’re on Sevika’s crew, if that’s your sense of humour.”

Benzo was as unreadable as any elcor could be expected to be, but Vi suspected he was touched by her comment.

“Informatively: Sevika did inform me you prefer shotguns. You are also a biotic. I do stock equipment to order that benefits what appears to be a more close-quarters combatant. You will find those wares on the terminal to your right.”

Vi nodded her thanks and logged onto the terminal. Benzo continued:

“Instructively: Once you have placed your order, we will accept delivery at one of our depots on the way to Omega. We will have to stop in to complete a few last consignments before the crew of the Sinestrus pivots to the new job under the Asari.”

Vi noticed Caitlyn’s head shoot up.

“You’re not fully involved yet?” the team leader questioned, hand hovering over what looked like an armour customisation module on her terminal screen.

“Factually: Sevika will never leave a job undone. Reassuringly: Do not worry, the deliveries are legal freight and turn around will be rapid,” Benzo replied, before pausing, his head slowly turning towards where the crew was finalising the order of crates to go into storage. “Politely: Please excuse me, I need to check on the rest of the requisitions and ensure Jericho is getting the right balance of appropriately amino chained supplies in the right place.”

The elcor slowly lumbered away.

“Wish Mel would have informed me,” Caitlyn grumbled under her breath once Benzo was out of earshot.

“Hey.” Vi nudged her with her shoulder. “Gives you more time to get all that important information you need in your head. Plus, it also gives me time to tell you all about how shit on Omega works.”

Caitlyn paused; her nose still scrunched in distaste.

“I suppose,” she finally said, face smoothing over “I expected us to be in a lot more of a rush than we are. I don’t like not having all the details.”

Vi found herself scoffing, thinking about the deal she’d been talked into by the Asari.

“Mel seems to be the type who likes to take advantage of that.”

“You could say that again,” Caitlyn responded, going back to her perusing of the terminal. “Trust me, we will be having a full and frank exchange of views about that particular idiosyncrasy in leadership once I've completed this order.”

Via smiled. She could imagine that Caitlyn had a lot of things she was going to say to the slippery Asari who had pulled them both into this mess. Sure, the stakes were worth fighting to. A device that could end the universe was something that should be taken care of.  But the way in which they were recruited did leave a sour taste in her mouth which she suspected Caitlyn was more used to than she’d wished to be.

“So how well do you know our boss?” Vi asked casually, as she flicked through an impressively discounted list of high-level shotguns.

“Did Mel not give you any details?” came the reply. “In your extended meeting?”

Vi shook her head, her fingers hovering over an Elkoss Combine Scimitar Shotgun titled ‘M-27 Scimitar’. While she preferred the Devlon Industries line, and had always dreamed of a Rosenkov Solokov X, she had heard rumours that the Elkoss Combine had been exploring the new heatsink technology to create a faster fire rate. It was an attractive thought, to have the ability to match her aggressive biotic use with something just as oppressive.

“I gathered she knew you from the whole incident with the Noxian Commandos, and the colony that was raided into oblivion,” Vi commented, selecting the shotgun. She had the allowance. Why not splurge? “We chatted briefly as I was onboarded about it, but I didn’t get anything specific.”

Caitlyn scowled and tapped a few parts of her terminal. Vi wondered what she was doing, what kind of equipment she was ordering. She knew the woman was a sniper, from her reputation with the Alliance, but aside from that, she knew little of her new squad leader’s combat capabilities.

“Yes, the incident.” Caitlyn’s tone was ice cold.

“She did say that it was complicated.”

“Did she tell you she fucked me over?”

God, hearing Caitlyn say the words ‘fucked over’ in that savage a tone really did something to Vi.

“She might have implied you believe it.”

Caitlyn almost growled, making a low noise in her throat. Again, there was a shiver that ran down Vi’s spine. She held herself still. Now was not the time to be a complete horn dog. They could save that for a lighter conversation topic.

“Implied I believe it. Typical.” Caitlyn tapped those long fingers a few more times on the terminal, finalising some piece of equipment that Vi did not recognise. “Hard not to believe I was fucked over when it was my decision to save her life that changed so much in mine.”

With finality, Caitlyn closed the terminal, clearly finishing her requisition order. Vi stared at her.

“You saved her life?”

Caitlyn sighed and met her eyes. She wasn't hiding the self-loathing shame and regret mixed with a steely determination and a will to weather the storm. Vi was stunned. There was nothing in the rumours that even hinted at something so substantial occurring.

“At great cost, yes,” Caitlyn’s reply was measured, despite the great emotional storm Vi could see ravaging her. “Great cost to me, my subordinates and the Alliance as a whole.”

A moment stretched on, a moment that felt full of mourning. Then the sniper glanced down, taking a moment to settle herself. Vi watched in pure astonishment. She’d figured Caitlyn had seen some shit, but there were levels of shit in the universe that Vi was sure you don’t come back from unchanged.

“Please excuse me,” Caitlyn said, meeting Vi’s eyes again, her voice only slightly wavering. “I do not enjoy talking about that particular situation. Especially with people who need to trust my judgement.”

Vi nodded, despite her growing curiosity. Caitlyn’s reasoning was sound. If what Caitlyn had done would undermine a team’s trust, it was better that Vi didn’t know… Even though some part of her felt like perhaps it wouldn’t matter. She could feel in herself a growing respect and admiration for Caitlyn, even in spite of the outrageous attraction she was holding back with all her strength. This woman was clearly more than just a hottie crooked cop, but she still didn’t know exactly what that more was.

“Sure thing, cupcake,” Vi responded. “But if you ever wanna talk about it… I’m also not super fond of Mel’s recruitment method, and I’m a real good sympathetic ear.”

The tension broke as Caitlyn’s expression shifted to confusion, then surprise before settling on pleased. She giggled slightly, smiling. Vi looked at that absolutely spectacular face, right down to the cute little gap between her teeth and felt that warm tingle again. The woman in front of her was undeniably too much.

“I’ll bear that in mind. Especially since you’ve already offered me a drink.”

“Hey, you know I’m good for it,” Vi pressed her advantage, throwing a wink and a smirk in for good measure. “I’ll even tell you some of my war stories. I’ve got some amazing ones that’ll make you laugh until you cry.”

Caitlyn’s smile widened and her voice took on a cheeky note:

“It has been a long time since I’ve swapped stories with someone. It’s been a lonely few years.”

The pause this time was charged. Vi felt the attraction rise between them once more, except this time, there was a shifting dynamic. She realised she wanted to get to know Caitlyn, not just make her see stars and scream Vi’s name. While she still wouldn’t kick the woman out of her bed for a conversation over coffee, perhaps there was something more going on than just sexual tension.

Well, this should be interesting.

Caitlyn then cleared her throat, and their connection transformed again.

“I should get going. I do need to have that talk with Mel.”

Oh, how Vi wished she could be a fly on the wall for that conversation.  Unknowing of Vi’s amusement, Caitlyn continued:

“Perhaps we should look at getting through the first few parts of this investigation before we reward ourselves with shore leave, hmm?”

“Is it really shore leave if we’re just in my quarters?” Vi countered.

“I’m just more surprised that you’re willing to drink with a turncoat coward,” Caitlyn riposted, her expression a grimace mixture of pained and playful. Vi felt her heart go out to the ex-lieutenant.

“Hey, c’mon now, we’ve all done things we regret,” she found herself saying. “Doesn’t mean we don’t deserve to feel anything good ever again.”

There was another pause, but this one felt comfortable, a growing connection between two people who had seen different sides of the galaxy. Vi felt her concerns and worries about what exactly they were being asked to do, and how she could protect her own slowly melt away. It was unnerving how quickly she was becoming comfortable around the tall beauty with legs for days.

“Thanks Vi.” Caitlyn broke the silence, her tone sincere. “You’ve given me something to think about.”

As the investigator walked away, Vi felt herself exhale, eyes squarely on Caitlyn’s behind. Hate to watch her leave, love watching her go…

Well, she wasn’t going to deny herself that vision. That would be hypocritical given her previous philosophical statement about allowing yourself to feel good.

Returning to the terminal, she checked her balance of credits. The shotgun, while discounted, did run a steep cost. Perhaps she needed to cheap out on a side arm, or maybe discount herself on some augmentation for her barrier generation…

She found herself wondering what kind of defence Caitlyn would run. By reputation, the woman was a quick hand with electronics, and being a long-range specialist, she would have to have some ability to move unseen around a battlefield. Probably uses strong shields, maybe a tactical cloak.

She would also need something to keep enemies at bay. Perhaps she would use Sabotage, or Overload to stun before finishing them off with a round straight to the skull. Vi thought back to Caitlyn’s response to Sevika’s entrance, her hand swinging to her side to reach for a sidearm… she suspected Caitlyn would favour a heavy pistol over a submachine gun, valuing accuracy and stopping power over oppressive covering fire.

Vi didn’t deny the thought of Caitlyn in action wasn’t incredibly sexy. She’d seen the determined expression on her face, the strong cold glare when she was focussed on something. Hand that woman a sniper rifle, and it would be curtains for anyone who dared to cross them. She imagined the two of them in action, Caitlyn up high, popping a heatsink between dropping targets with perfect aim, Vi causing mayhem, crushing bones with her biotic charges, before clearing house with her new shotgun…

Settle down, you’ve still got credits to spend.

Smiling to herself, VI returned to her shopping. As she perused, she was astonished by how decent the prices on some of the high-level equipment were. There was a modular armour system, compatible with her current combat harness of webbing straps and buckles, featuring both chunky gauntlets with armoured knuckles and reinforced angular joints which would turn any fast-moving combatant into the equivalent of a Morningstar should they choose to hit with elbow, shoulder or knee. Reading the description, the system was a prototype from Talis Industries and was designed for Vanguards within special operation classes for the Alliance. It featured an in-built biotic and barrier augmentation pack, which would cut costs needed for extra armour modules, and would permit quick suiting up.

Even better, she could customise the colour of both the reinforced plates and the LEDs.

That was absolutely going in the basket.

After she’d chosen a matte dark grey for the plate and yellow for the edges where the reinforcement was, she looked at her total credits left to spend. Between the shotgun and the armour system, she had maybe enough left over for either a sidearm, a grenade launcher add-on for her gauntlet, or a visor or augmentation system for her biotics.

The sidearm was the first ‘no thank you’. Vi knew herself. She was not fond of switching weapons, preferring to shockwave, pull, charge and shoot, usually in that order. Her combat style was to punch first and ask questions later and it worked for her.

For this reason, an automated grenade launcher was not optimal. Being close to explosives was counterintuitive to survival, and Vi knew herself well enough to know she could be reckless when the adrenaline started to flow. Learning that lesson was the reason why she had the scars on her lips and eyebrow. Shrapnel was a hell of a thing.

That left her with purchasing a visor. Now that option was attractive. Vi had always relied upon her physical capabilities when under pressure. Having something that could help keep track of the chaos of her favoured kind of engagement would be a useful bonus, especially if it made her more accurate and hit harder.

She flicked the terminal to the section labelled helmets/visors and scrolled until she saw it. The Umbra Visor. A set of night vision goggles that helped in tracking enemies and focussing biotic powers. The set available had been modified to be worn on the forehead, ready to be slipped down at moment’s notice – clearly another prototype that had been leaked onto the market and acquired by Mel’s contacts. Vi knew she had hit the jackpot. Omega was dark, dingy and narrow. Having the ability to see through the smog and shadow would give her the edge needed, especially if she had to be more agile in order to give Caitlyn the best chance of succeeding from an overwatch position.

As she clicked on the ‘add to order’ button, Vi bemusedly considered that she hadn’t even been in battle with Caitlyn yet but was still trying to consider her in her choices. It was strange. She wasn’t the type who usually did that.

Vi began to finalise her order, only for a beeping to come from her comms device embedded in her ear piercings. With a furrowed brow, she tapped the top white LED:

"Who's this?"

"Your favourite new engineering friend, Vi!" came the chipper reply in a warm male voice.

She rolled her eyes. Jayce fucking Talis. Of course. Pretty boy had hacked her secure comms line. Why the fuck was Jayce calling her?

“Didn’t realise I’d given you my access code.”

“Didn’t realise I needed to ask you for one,” Jayce's tone was full of mirth.

“You do know that violating my secure comms channel is cause enough for me to come upstairs and kick your ass, pretty boy.”

“You wouldn’t do that,” Jacye replied, sounding even more amused. “Caitlyn would be very disappointed in you if you did.”

“So?” Vi lied, teeth clenched. “Why should that bother me?”

“Because no one anywhere in the galaxy should want to be on Caitlyn Kirramman’s bad side.”

Vi sighed. Jayce, unfortunately, was right. Just not for the reasons he thought he was.

“Anyway, that’s not why I buzzed you. I was going to ask if you would be ok with bringing the Talis Modular Vanguard System up to my lab when you pick it up from the drop point?” His voice was earnest. “I’d like to make sure it’s fully integrated with the visor, and your L3 implant.”

Vi immediately felt uncomfortable. How much information did Jayce have access to?

“You can see my shopping list? And my implant spec?”

“I see all,” Jayce replied dramatically. “Well, not all but I do have oversight over all information kiosks and terminals in the Sinestrus, apart from Mel’s, Sevika’s, Viktor’s and Caitlyn’s. It was my idea for a cover story – anyone ask why the genius man of progress Jayce Talis is aboard? I’m augmenting Sevika’s ship as part of a contract with Mel Medarda.”

“I see,” Vi said, flatly. “So do you control anything else, or…”

“Oh, I do, my dear mercenary, I do. Have you been to the training centre yet?”

“No, but it was on my list of things to do after I finished this order,” Vi growled, unimpressed. “Until I was interrupted by some annoying rich playboy.”

“Excuse me, that’s annoying rich genius playboy,” Jayce bantered back, seemingly uncaring about Vi’s irritation. “It’s ok, you’ll get it right one day. Finish up your order and head to the training centre. I’ve got some very cool toys I want to show off.”

There was a beep as the annoying rich playboy signed off. Vi wasn’t going to give him the title ‘genius’. Not until she saw something worth being awestruck about. Why did Caitlyn even like the guy? All Vi saw was the kind of man she would have no qualms running a crew of thieves against. He was irritating, annoying, and overly familiar to people he really should be keeping his distance from…

With that in mind, Vi finalised her order and shut the terminal down. As Benzo had said, they were going to have to wait for delivery at one of the stops on the way to Omega. She supposed it did make sense – Sevika was a high demand cargo pilot, and Caitlyn did need the time to get her head around what information the crew could contribute to her investigation. Would Caitlyn want to interview all of them? Vi found herself smiling as she walked towards the door leading back into the corridor towards the lift, meeting room, and training centre. She imagined Caitlyn trying to get information out of Sevika, or Mel. Surely, Caitlyn wasn’t that good an investigator? What could she hope to learn from anyone unless she was an absolute gun at interrogation-

The thought suddenly gave her pause, slowing her steps as she walked towards the training centre door.

Mel had recruited Caitlyn for both leadership and investigation. Mel had also recruited Sevika, one of the best freelance frigate pilots and boss of one of the baddest cargo crews in the galaxy. She had managed to bring in Talis Industries, which (while being run by an arrogant jackass) had designed what Vi considered the perfect battle harness system for a Vanguard. That spoke to some level of competence in the company, right? And Mel had hired her – the best fucking mercenary in non-council space. Vi knew she was good, knew she had one of the highest rated reputations and lodgement of jobs, a mere step or two behind legends like Zaeed Massani. So, if Mel could pick talent that was the best of the best...

Caitlyn would also have capacities and abilities far outside the norm. Vi felt a pit open in the bottom of her stomach as she considered the possibilities. Would Caitlyn be able to figure out what Vi knew beyond what she was comfortable sharing? The thought gave her chills, especially if certain individuals were wrapped up in this whole ‘evil space destroying battery’ scenario. She had promised to stay away, on pain of death. Had sworn she would never cross those lines again.

But if the worst scenario was true, Vi had to step up. She had to do something.

And Caitlyn could never know.

The settlement of that thought process had kept her occupied to the training centre door, which opened to her touch. As she stepped in and looked around, the worry she felt melted away, replaced by the closest thing to awe she had experienced within the confines of a gym.

Fucking hell, it was beautiful.

The training centre housed weights, treadmills, boxing bags, a two-lane firing range and a climbing wall. The equipment gleamed in the light cast from the giant FTL drive situated above it, behind what looked to be a sheet of plexiglass. In the middle of the space was a large arena, slightly raised and bordered with padded rungs.

Suddenly, music started to play in the space. Exciting, thumping music with a dark backbeat and aggressive synths. Vi heard Jayce’s voice crackle over the speakers.

“There is no mercy in this dojo!”

Jayce’s impersonation of a ring announcer was terrible.

The panels on the floor if the arena suddenly popped open in three places, and three humanoid robots rose quickly from below, standing in an approximation of a ‘come at me’ pose. The music reached a crescendo, then died down, leaving Vi torn between cringing and laughing.

“Are you kidding me, pretty boy?”

“Come on, I thought that was quite a good welcome, don’t you think?” His voice was still smugly amused. “Now, go on, throw a shockwave at the bots. See what happens.”

Vi shrugged. Pulling an arm back, she summoned her biotic power and unleashed an aggressive snapping arm movement. The ripple of blue energy rattled across the floor like a wave, before popping the three robots up in the air with a whirring sound of rotors. As they came crashing down, they smashed into pieces. Vi heard applause from the speakers

“Nice work! Powerful. Now… watch.”

To Vi’s surprise, the panels on the floor of the arena flipped, scooping the pieces of droid back into the floor. There was another whirring sound, and three more bots suddenly appeared, again with the same cocky posture. Vi was stunned.

“Jayce, no way.”

“Amazing, isn’t it?” Jayce said, his voice enthusiastic. “I built a hyper efficient combat drone assembler in the floor. You can set the bots to all kinds of behaviour – avoidant, aggressive, defensive, counter-fighting, close or long range, whatever you want. You can also choose between one and five opponents and just trash them and smash them. No matter what, they’ll reset for another round.”

“That’s…” Vi was speechless. Jayce had created the perfect place for her to hone all her skills, physical and biotic against one to multiple opponents. “That’s fucking awesome.”

“I know, right?” Jayce was all kinds of excited. “I see potential for this as a sport, y’know. Like how fast can you clear the arena? This of course is a prototype but-”

“Jayce?” Vi cut him off. “Shut the fuck up and show me how to set this shit up. I’m gonna be spending a lot of time down here.”

As Jayce laughed and began to run her through the various mechanisms available, Vi had to admit: Maybe pretty boy was going to earn the title of ‘genius’.

Chapter Text

The elevator ride back up to the mess and quarters gave Caitlyn a chance to strategize her approach. Mel was a master of manipulative tactics, there was no way that she wouldn’t expect some kickback for her decision-making. In the past, Caitlyn had tried to see the reason in the decisions being made on her behalf, as all good soldiers do, and excuse the command above her. Mel was trained in politics. She had to have good reasons for her actions, right?

But the more time she spent working with Mel again, the more she realised something had to fucking give. She wasn’t the same naïve in command wet-behind-the-ears lieutenant she was back when it all started. She knew more than before. She had learned her lessons the hardest way one could. She had lost over and over again, and she was determined to not let it happen once more.

God, how close she’d come to telling Vi, though. It was on the tip of her tongue, the shame and anger.

Vi had referred to herself as ‘a grunt’ and it was all Caitlyn could do not to visibly recoil. Most of her grunts had died under her watch. She couldn’t be trusted with that level of command. No. With this it would be different – different operational contexts. She would take the lead in the field, and then when the mission was done, retreat into herself where no one could get hurt to look at facts and evidence.

That way, everyone would be safe from her poor judgement. And she could control the narrative…

All of that being said, what Mel had done was beyond inappropriate. The asari had manipulated Vi and her into positions where both had been taken advantage of. Caitlyn’s career on the Citadel, while far from solid, had been sacrificed to free Vi and ensure Caitlyn’s involvement with the mission to the detriment of any other opportunity to make something of herself, and Vi had been fucked out of her due as a mercenary. Caitlyn wasn’t stupid – far from it – she knew how much mercenaries relied on reputation and cashflow to supplement their lack of employment in lean times. Mel had locked Vi into a deal that, deep down, kept her out of the market for an extended period.

It was time for a reckoning. No more of the bullshit Noxian command style. If they were going to do this, they were going to do this her way.

Mel looked up as the doors to her office opened and Caitlyn entered. Caitlyn did well to keep her face placid and masked in polite attention.

“Ah, Caitlyn, I expected you sooner,” Mel smiled, leaning forward. “I hope you found everything to your liking for requisitions. Now I know that there is an unavoidable delay but-”

Caitlyn waited until the door closed, before she stormed forwards, slamming her hands onto Mel’s desk. Mel, to her credit, managed to keep her reaction to a slight jump and a widening of the eyes.

“Did I do something to upset you?” The Asari’s tone was mild but her body tensed. Good.

“Upset me?” Caitlyn’s throat felt was tight, words spat through gritted teeth. Her heart was pounding. “Upset me? Let me think, what could possibly have occurring regarding the recruitment of my team members that could maybe perhaps upset me?”

There was a dawning realisation across Mel’s face as she considered what had occurred in the last few hours.

“Oh.” The Asari had the decency to look abashed but that wasn’t enough.

“Oh?” Caitlyn felt icy, focussed wholly on Mel with a stare that burned cold. “Is that all you have to say?”

Mel sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Caitlyn could almost see her scrolling and flipping through the various conflict resolution strategies and techniques she knew, before settling on what Mel probably thought was an appeal to reason.

“Look, I understand if you do not approve of my methods, given your history with command,” Mel said easily, spreading her hands with a shrug.

Nope, we’re using gaslighting, it seems.

Caitlyn was not having it. Not this time.

“It’s not your methods I question, it’s your integrity,” Caitlyn snapped, gripping the desk hard. “Now, I know you’re used to fucking me over. Hell, I half expected it the moment I felt myself fall into your intrigue. Perhaps I’m a masochist, because I keep letting you do it-”

“Caitlyn, come on-” Mel interjected, but Caitlyn did not pause, her eyes flashing angrily.

“And yes, I was probably going to get fired from C-Sec for insubordination, and I’m sure that absolutely contributed to my poor decision-making.” Her tone became sarcastic and acidic. “Luckily for you, I don’t seem to care about where I end up, so clearly, it’s fine for you to make sure all possibility for any future at C-Sec was well and truly dead in the water.”

Mel again tried to interrupt:

“I thought you would be amenable to-”

“Amenable to what? Using the last of my credibility in any formal law or military organisation to do you the favour of acquiring you yet another human to take advantage of?”

Caitlyn paused as Mel sat back in stunned silence. Taking the initiative, Caitlyn soldiered on, picking her shots with the same care she always did, leaning closer to make sure that every comment hit its mark. She wanted Mel to feel it, to feel the consequences of her action.

“In spite of my gut telling me different, I thought you had changed,” she said, holding back her frustration by mere nanofibers of self-control. “Hell, you told me that you left the Noxian Commandos, so there I was, thinking perhaps you’d grown a… a fucking heart or at least some sense of empathy. But no, you lured me in as bait to get what you really needed.”

“Caitlyn, that is not the case.” Mel finally got a word in “I do need your skills as well.”

“As well, huh? You need my skills as well. You just confirmed that Vi was the real resource you were after.”

“Do not put words in my mouth,” Mel thundered. “I came to you first.”

“Because without me, there was no possible way you could get Vi to agree to meet you in the first place!”

There was another stunned silence as Mel’s breath caught in her throat, cutting off her next comment. Caitlyn swallowed, and when she spoke, to her own horror, her voice ached with a deep emotional pain.

“I’m not stupid, Mel. I am many things, but unintelligent is not one of them,” Caitlyn bit out. “You have a whole roster of investigation specialists worthy of command. But a mercenary with contacts on Omega, with enough secrets for you to get her for cheap? There’s only one of those.”

She took a breath and as she continued, the pit of her stomach sank as her tone grew wretched.

“And you know me. You know her. You know us both. There was no way you didn’t… wouldn’t gather that we would click. No way you didn’t predict that she would trust me because I am considered ‘crooked’ at best and ‘turncoat’ at worst.”

She took a deep breath, the loathing pouring from her throat from that dark shameful spot deep in her soul.

“I remember who you used to be,” she said, her voice dead. “Who you are. Where you learned everything you know.”

“Caitlyn, please…” Mel begged for a moment of attention, of a way in. “I do need you as well.”

Caitlyn pushed herself off the desk and turned to look out the observation port near Mel’s bed.

“Do you?” Caitlyn felt herself mutter; her lips felt numb. “Or do you just know how expendable I really am?”

As she stared at the view, she felt herself slowly grow empty and lonely. She wished they were out in the galaxy, where the stars and the ripple of FTL travel would cloak them in an intimate silence. The universe never judged.

Instead, the rectangular viewport just showed more of the Citadel, the latest bridge she had burned to the ground with her incompetence.

At least no one died this time.

“And the really fucked up thing?” Caitlyn continued to Mel’s silence. She knew she sounded drained, exhausted. “I honestly don’t care. I probably am expendable. It’s remarkable that I haven’t met my end yet. But Vi?”

She shot Mel another angry look, feeling her body grow tense again. It was as if Caitlyn was possessed by the spirit of the commanding officers she wished she could be – Anderson, Shepard, Greyson. The strength of the burden of responsibility that she had not felt since before it all happened…

“She did not deserve to be manipulated like that.” There was a surprising amount of steel in Caitlyn’s voice, drawn from the place where her dreams had died. “You did not have to throw her in stasis when she tried to walk or imply harm to people she might know if she refused.”

She felt her body grow stronger again, the feeling of numbness replaced once more by a fire stoked by how unfair Mel’s treatment of Vi was.

“You did not have to undermine the connection we had developed and use it to keep her off balance by disrespecting me.”

Caitlyn stepped back to the desk again, this time leaning down more slowly, allowing her height to menace Mel.

“You did not have to manipulate her into a deal that we both know does not even begin to cover what could happen to her if the Noxian Asari realise what we are doing.”

Mel’s jaw dropped but no sound came out. Caitlyn continued to press her advantage:

“If you want me to lead the fieldwork for this enterprise, if you need me to apply whatever investigative skill you believe I possess to resolve an issue you brought into my life, you will change the way you manage my team.”

The statement was firm and non-negotiable, punctuated by an unspoken threat. Of what, Caitlyn didn’t know, and she hoped Mel realised what that meant for them both.

“I do not care what you do to me,” she continued, dropping her tone menacingly.  “Hell, in throwing my lot in with you, I’ve basically run myself out of civilised space into the outer systems.”

Caitlyn noticed Mel’s eyes were wide. This was a strange feeling. Mel could rip her apart like tissue paper, had all the power and skill that could put Caitlyn down and out. But Caitlyn had her pinned, stunned into silence and inaction.

“But there will be no more manipulation of anyone you have put under my command. If you truly believe I have something to offer, then you will do me this courtesy.” She let her lips twist into a rueful smile and growled out the last of her anger. “Else, what the fuck am I even doing here with the likes of you?”

This time, the pause was beyond tense. Caitlyn saw the wheels in Mel’s head turn, a terrifyingly satisfying combo of catching the Asari off guard and finally standing her ground in the face of unjust orders.

Then it happened…

To Caitlyn’s shock, Mel smiled slightly.

“So, you do care for your team,” she said softly. “Well done.”

The confusion was instant. Caitlyn leaned back, feeling her forehead furrow. Mel slowly stood up, the smile widening.

“I was worried how much you would let me get away with. Honestly, I thought I would have to start in on poor Jayce.”

Caitlyn’s pulse pounded in her ears. She drew herself up to her full height, shaking in rage:

“You… You wanted me to do this? Why?”

Mel nodded, that same annoyingly charming smile on her face.

“I did not lie when I said I needed you. What I did not say was I needed all of you,” she explained. “The commander who would give anything to protect her team, as well as the observant investigator who put together the strategy that saved my life.”

The revelation crashed into Caitlyn, knocking the air from her lungs. She felt her body collapse into a chair opposite the asari’s desk. It was quickly dawning on her that yet again, Mel had been playing chess when she had been playing checkers…

“I do apologise for the way in which it occurred.” Well at least Mel’s apology sounded sincere. “But it was the only way I could think of to see how much you had grown. I knew you had it in you. I watched you almost self-destruct after what happened at the colony. But I had to be sure.”

She stood and Caitlyn was struck by how Mel had, as she seemed always able do, reversed their positions. Once more, Mel was in control and once more, Caitlyn felt the rising resentment towards the Asari’s ability towards thinking further ahead than anyone she had ever known. Mel appeared to notice the unease.

“I know it will be hard to believe, but this is the last time I will ever do that to you. It was for the best of reasons.”

She sighed and rubbed her temples slightly, before continuing.

“Do you know how old I am, Caitlyn?”

Seeing the human shake her head in response, Mel chuckled. Caitlyn heard a note of bitterness and was surprised to feel herself resonate with it. What is going on?

“I am 330 years old,” Mel explained. “I am experiencing some… changes in the way in which I see the galaxy. It makes for a… difficult time for me to relate to the shorter-lived races.”

She put her hands behind her back, and Caitlyn realised she was standing at ease, an odd posture for someone as congenial as Mel to take. Then, the asari continued with a measured tone, unlike anything Caitlyn had heard from her before.

“I have been a huntress - a commando - for 200 years. I have fought across systems, defeated enemies that you will never hear of.” Her gaze grew unfocussed. “I have met and seen many individuals die, most of whom did not deserve their fates.”

She smiled ruefully.

“It has made me somewhat detached from the realities of command, that ability to value the people in their service. Do not get me wrong, I am an excellent strategist.”

Caitlyn couldn’t help but agree. The evidence was what had occurred since Mel had come into The Dark Star Longue with an offer of intrigue and two C-Sec officers on her tail…

“A good strategist understands her own weakness and works to either nullify or overcome it.” Mel paused, then snorted, still somewhat gracefully. “As we are somewhat pushed for time, the latter is unavailable to me.”

Caitlyn felt a part of her resentment towards Mel thaw, despite everything that had occurred. This was new, this vulnerability. While she knew this could be another strategy, or tactic, she found herself not really caring. The fact was, Mel’s statements were undeniable – she was distant, by virtue of being asari, of being a commando, of being Noxian.

The asari continued, expression level:

“I have encountered many humans in the short time you have been part of galactic society, and you are all so different. I have met civilians who are braver than the highest ranked military commanders. Thieves with more integrity than politicians representing your home planet.”

Caitlyn scoffed at that. It wasn’t hard. Most politicians she had met were far more morally malleable than she had ever been accused of being.

“In the short years between our last meeting, and now, I have made a point of exploring human society, originally under orders, but now out of interest,” Mel continued. “And in that time, I have not met a human the same as any other. And you, Caitlyn…”

The asari smiled genuinely, meeting Caitlyn’s curious gaze.

“You are unique. I have watched a change, a shift in you. You have always had potential for greatness. Now, I know that potential rests upon your integrity. Your willingness to protect those under your command. And that is exactly what we need.”

Mel sighed and sat down again, pulling a flat storage drive out from a stack next to her.

“We do not know who will oppose us,” she explained, sliding the black rectangle across the desk to Caitlyn. “There is a possibility Noxus will take far more umbrage against my mission than I predicted. Smuggling rings often work with the Blue Suns, Eclipse or the Blood Pack, if not smaller, more nimble, less honourable organised syndicates. The Batarian Hegemony may even be involved. We just do not know.”

As Caitlyn took the drive, Mel’s voice got even more sincere.

“I need someone in the field who will fight to protect the people I have dragged into this mess.”

“Why, because you cannot trust yourself?” Caitlyn interjected, although the bite was taken out of her tone. Mel smirked.

“Because you have proven yourself willing to make the decisions that no one else is willing to make.”

It had been a long time since Caitlyn had felt the weight of command settle across her shoulders. It was not a feeling she necessarily welcomed, especially given the results of her last outing. She still sometimes had nightmares, whispered words of her soldiers asking her to tell their loved ones that they missed them before the popping of an exploding generator cut the transmission, the feeling of exhaustion gnawing at her bones as she sank round after round into those who would take the colony from her people. From the Alliance. From humanity.

And still, she had failed. The colony had been found unsustainable from “galactic instability”, due a reassessment in 150 years time, long after she would probably be dead. The Noxian Commandos had gotten the acknowledgement for pulling her arse out of the fire, while Mel stood silently by. She had to stand at attention as Matriarch Ambessa explained the official version of events to the Council.

The stern matriarch had told Caitlyn it was the only way to protect the surviving Alliance soldiers from facing worse punishments as the result of her decision to protect the Asari over her own. A decision she made naively, hoping to prevent something much worse from happening…

“How do you know your choices are the right ones?” she murmured, looking down at the memory drive. She felt Mel’s eyes on her again, soft and understanding.

“We cannot know,” came the reply, just as sympathetic as the expression currently carved into the Asari’s face. “All we can do is live with the consequences and the understanding that we had the best of intentions.”

Caitlyn let the statement sink in slowly, turning the storage disk over in her hands. She hated to admit it, but in this weird liminal space between the Mel she had been dealing with and the Mel who she would be trusting in the future, Caitlyn felt a sense of freefall. The pillars of her understanding of who she was and what was expected of her were being given a strong shaking by passing whatever test the Asari had given her. Mel was looking at her with complete faith and Caitlyn didn’t have the ability to tell her just how misplaced that faith was.

Perhaps she didn’t have to be the inspiring commander all the time. Perhaps she could still shift between leading from the field and hiding in her room with the facts and theories that offered her a sense of control. A memory of Vi’s face in statis, her eyes the only moving part, staring with absolute understanding filled Caitlyn’s mind and she instantly pushed the feeling of butterflies down and away. No. The flirtatious distraction was enough of a pressure release. She didn’t deserve to allow herself more. She would find enough in the spaces in between.

Mel broke Caitlyn from her thoughts with a nudge of a data pad towards her, as well as a gold earpiece, her intention to finalise the onboarding of the team leader apparent. Caitlyn looked up into an expression that hinted at none of the openness Mel had displayed. Clearly, whatever had passed between them was over for now. She took the data-pad and stacked it on top of the memory drive, the earpiece tucked into a pocket of her BDU pants.

“You will find all the information I have on those devices,” Mel explained, leaning back and steepling her fingers in front of her. “The memory drive has all elements related to the Prothean theft and possible avenues of smuggling ingresses. The data pad is a record of our team member dossiers.”

Caitlyn nodded, turning the material over in her hands, before realising that Mel was looking at her expectantly.

“So?” The question was polite, but prodding. “How did you go with requisitions?”

Caitlyn thought back to the topic Mel brought up as she stormed in, that version of this conversation feeling like it had occurred years ago.

“I completed my order for equipment. Jayce did a wonderful job with his recommendations.”

She did not include his suggestions for the book on meditation and bubble bath he’d included for ‘morale’, which had earned a wry smile and a consideration of how she could prank him back. Mind you, Caitlyn was aware that Jayce’s sense of humour could have resulted in something much worse. He had jokingly bought her some erotic films and novels before when she complained of being too uptight during her Alliance training.

The thought of perusing items of that nature while Vi was standing right there was a powerful one… which was why she shoved it immediately away.

“I settled on a M-6 Carnifex to replace my sidearm,” Caitlyn explained. “I also chose a Kuwashii Visor to augment my aim, as well as multiple modular upgrades for power reinforcement of my omni tool, which I will be working with Jayce and his team on re-developing to make it fit for purpose. My personal sniper rifle will undergo similar customisation, once I get a chance to get into the lab.”

“Excellent choices,” Mel complimented. “Considered shots and overwatch are more your speed than rapid cover fire. What of your armour?”

Caitlyn hesitated. She had considered returning to the Aldrin Labs Onyx loadout that she had previously worn an Alliance-issued version of in plain dark grey. It made sense – she knew how it moved, what it felt like as she crouched to aim…

But the thought of feeling her body in that loadout made her skin crawl. She had sweated, bled and almost died in that armour, had fought off pirates and exhaustion without fail, holding the line while her squad muttered their final farewells in her ear. No, there was no going back to that. She could not allow herself to be trapped in memories of her failures, especially when she had to rely on her equipment to keep herself alive.

Jayce had earmarked something else for her anyway – Armax Arsenal was in the process of developing modular armour sets, with focus on shield strength, ammunition storage and accuracy. For some unknown reason, the prototype had been released via Mel’s connections in an almost black dark blue plating colour and dimmable gold LEDs. Jayce’s notes had highlighted that the set, being non-propriety, could feasibly interact with the visor from Kuwashii given (in his words) “enough jailbreaking”.

The suit also came with a sealed respiratory helmet, which could be worn should Caitlyn need to enter uninhabitable environments that could fit over her visor. While Sevika would have access to breathing equipment they could borrow, Caitlyn always felt more comfortable having oversight over all her equipment.

“Jayce’s suggestions proved fruitful there.” Caitlyn broke the silence. “I am acquiring the Armax Arsenal prototype and customising it to work with the Kuwashii and my omni tool.”

Mel whistled low under her breath, and Caitlyn felt a knot in her chest loosen. The Asari was impressed.

“Smart thinking. Armax’s manufacturing is some of the finest in the galaxy. Turians do know their stuff when it comes to armaments,” Mel leaned forwards and rested her elbows on the desk. “What of heavy munitions? Grenades? Missile launchers?”

Caitlyn shook her head, the answer already locked, loaded and ready to launch:

“I considered it, but I would rather get the lay of the land in Omega and develop an understanding of what we’re up against before I start spending our resources unknowingly.”

“Wise,” Mel replied, with a smile. “While I do have rather deep pockets, I still have not received a bill from either Jayce, or our medical expert Viktor, and I do worry for how far down they will reach into my resources.”

Caitlyn laughed at that. While she didn’t know Viktor well, she did know Jayce. He had expensive tastes in both research and appearance. Unless they kept an eye on him, he would hyper fixate on the possibility of something working over the feasibility of financing it.

The doors to Mel’s office opened again as Sevika entered, accompanied by what appeared to be an ancient male Krogan. His chin had sharp white spikes, which also spread along the edges of his jaw. His eyes were a bright blue, his crest a dark brown, his skin a lighter yellow-green than other Krogan Caitlyn had encountered. He wore casual space-farer garb in dark blue and silver, with a white overlay covering the top of his hump. In one of his three fingered hands, he held a data pad.

“Holo board acquired, Kirramman,” Sevika said, by way of greeting. “We shifted your desk slightly, to give your more space.”

“Thank you,” Caitlyn replied with a smile. “I really appreciate it.”

The turian waved a claw at her, dismissively. Caitlyn took it less as rudeness and more as discomfort for being thanked for what Sevika probably considered was a simple request.

“Yeah, yeah, sure.” Sevika turned to the Krogan. “Did you want to introduce yourself to Caitlyn before you ask Mel for more credits, or after?”

There was a low chuckle in response:

“While my clutchmates may be uncultured, I at least will make some attempt to redeem our reputation.”

His voice, while typically low as a Krogan tends to be, was surprisingly warm and expressive, with a faster pace than expected. Caitlyn felt her eyebrows rise in surprise and he chuckled in response.

“I will never tire of human surprise,” he said with a smile. “The way in which your faces change is quite amusing. My name is Dinga Heim, Krogan preservationist and expert engineer.”

“Krogan preservationist?” Caitlyn found herself asking. She had encountered Krogan before and found them self-interested, bloodthirsty and territorial. Being a ‘preservationist’ did not seem to resonate with her past experiences. Heim caught her surprise with good nature.

“Every species has their anomalies. Rest assured; I have spent more than my fair share of my very long-life wading through blood in a rage.” Caitlyn saw the Krogan’s old face become lined with determination. “After over a thousand years of micro conflicts between myself and those around me, I figured what better fight than the one for our history?”

“Then how come you are with Talis Industries?” Caitlyn questioned.

“Technology is the key to our destruction,” Heim explained. “So why would it not also contain the key to our survival?”

“You’re talking of the Genophage,” Mel interjected, voice unnervingly calm.

“Genophage? Pah!” The dismissal was a surprise that seemed to rattle even Mel. “Our lack of social cohesion is a far greater immediate threat to us than the Genophage. Unifying all the clans through our rites, songs, history, then refocussing on the value of technology would allow us to come together to prove to the Council that we can police ourselves as a cohesive society. This would permit for the discussion surrounding the Genophage and Krogan colonialism to be reopened in a more civil fashion.”

Caitlyn was silent. Krogan culture was notorious for being self-destructive and expansionist. What Heim proposed was a complete rebuilding of their cultural heritage, to access their old ways to develop a Krogan nation, instead of the disparate groups of warriors who warred over limited resources.

Was Heim mad?

Mel, however, was always the consummate diplomat:

“I look forward to discussing the potential for such an approach with you over a meal sometime, Heim,” she said. “It would be refreshing to hear the perspective for preservation and evolution of Krogan society, over a return to the old warfaring ways.”

Heim inclined his head, and it occurred to Caitlyn that this very elderly Krogan was one of the most unique individuals she had ever encountered. Those bright blue eyes looked to her expectantly, and she realised he was waiting for her to return the introduction.

“Caitlyn Kirramman. Investigator and Field Team Leader.”

“Ah, the human in command of the fallen colony of Topside,” Heim responded, his voice level. Caitlyn searched for judgement but found nothing but observation in the Krogan’s face.

“I see my reputation proceeds me,” she commented, trying to keep her voice level. Heim shot her a look that could have been sympathetic if the light hit his craggy face just right.

“The only opinions I trust are ones supported by evidence,” came the reply in that same level tone. “Jayce speaks incredibly highly of you. If he believes in your capacity as a leader and investigator, so do I.”

“This is all very sentimental,” Sevika interrupted. “But don’t we all have work to do?”

She looked pointedly at the materials in Caitlyn’s hands. Caitlyn felt herself flush as she stood. Mel drummed her fingers on the desk,

“As much as I dislike the way in which it was said, Sevika is right. Heim and I do need to finalise this last purchase order for equipment, and I am sure Caitlyn needs to set up her holo board and desk.”

“Of course, I’m right. I’m the expert in transport after all.” The Turian smirked. “Once we’ve locked down any last-minute requisitions or credit spend, I want to feed my crew and get this bird in the sky.”

She paused, before looking at Caitlyn. If she looked carefully, she could see a hint of amusement cast across her face.

“We have two stops to make before we go to Omega,” Sevika snarked, a turian smile widening her mandibles. “So, if you’ve got any ooh-rah team building bullshit you want to run, keep me and my crew out of it, ok?”

On that note, Sevika stomped out of the office. Caitlyn sighed.

“Is she always like that?”

“Sevika?” Mel questioned. “Oh, I would take her joviality as a compliment. If she is not threatening to shoot you, it means she likes you enough to keep you alive.”

Heim chuckled. Caitlyn sighed again and, nodding her farewells, followed Sevika’s path out of the office.

The mess and quarters were still deserted, the crew and her future team clearly finalising their last few duties. She wondered where Vi was – she would be the only person who would be at a conceivably loose end. Perhaps she should go and find her? Maybe take a moment to resettle by spending some time bantering with the incredibly attractive mercenary.

Quickly, she shut that down. She needed to focus. The drive and data pad in her hands suddenly felt heavier. There was a huge amount of work to be done sorting out where the information would go. She also had to check her rifle and omni tool, before making time to spend in the engineering lab with Heim and Jayce.

She closed her eyes and exhaled, making her way to her room. It was time to get to work.

Chapter Text

Vi didn’t know how long she’d been beating the fuck out of drones in the hanger level and honestly, she didn’t care. She hadn’t had this much fun doing combat exercises since the stint she’d had with the strange Drell Assassin who had hired her to make enough of a fuss for him to get in and out unseen.

She wondered what happened to him. He was a strange guy, quiet, but deadly in precision. The fact he’d taught her some cool biotic moves aside; Vi had enjoyed the reprieve from loudmouth gang members or entitled rich corporate types.

Ducking underneath a mechanical arm that was thrown quickly in her direction, she threw a biotically enhanced punch at the last drone and used a charge to push herself to the outer railing of the arena.

Thumping her fist into her palm, she rolled her shoulders and prepared for another round. However, instead of a reset, there was a buzzer that sounded.

“And that’s time!” came Jayce’s voice over the speakers again. There was a quick sting of very cringy trumpets, before the lights in the training centre dimmed slightly, turning a washed-out yellow.

“C’mon, pretty boy, is that all you’ve got?” Vi snarked. “You know I got more in the tank.”

“You may have more in the tank,” Jayce replied. “But we are in the process of finalising lift off, and I’m pretty sure you need a shower and a change of clothes.”

Vi grunted, rubbing her nose with a forearm. Her undershirt was dark with sweat, her feet hot in her boots. She could do with a clean down and some fresh clothing. There was only one problem however:

“Fuck, I forgot to order civvies.”

She heard Jayce laugh, and the urge to punch him rose.

“I noticed when I checked in on your items.” Jayce sounded smug. “Don’t worry, there is a change of clothing in your quarters – it’s basic but nothing I’m sure you won’t pull off with your typical rakish charm. I also took the liberty of adding a few items to your cart before I finalised the approval for requisition. I got some things for you to use when you’re not doing your best prison escapee impression.”

Vi felt her expression go flat.

“Don’t worry, I made sure they were in your style, not mine,” Jayce continued. “Although you could do with some more… sophistication.

“I’ll sophisticate your ass,” Vi snapped, as she made her way to the door that led back to the corridor with the elevator upstairs. Whatever Jayce was going to say was cut off by the sound of the training centre doors closing behind her.

As she walked back to the elevator, she almost ran into a short human woman with rosy, pink hair. She wore the same earthy colours as Sevika’s crew, with a loose hooded jacket over her crew shirt and cargos. She also rocked some chunky work boots, a toolbelt, and carried a crate. Around her neck were a pair of welding goggles.

“Sorry,” the woman said, softly. “Wasn’t watching where I was going.”

Vi gave her a friendly smile, holding the elevator door open for her.

“Hey, no sweat. What level are you going to?”

“Engineering,” came the reply, with a grateful smile as Vi selected the floor and the doors closed.

“Damn,” Vi countered. “I’m not allowed on that level, otherwise I’d offer to help. Crate looks heavy.”

“Oh yeah, you’re Vi aren’t you?” The woman sounded amused, shifting the crate in her arms. “I’m Eve. One of the engineering team.”

“I noticed the kit.” Vi responded, before leaning back against the wall of the elevator. Eve gave her another smile, before settling into a comfortable silence.

After a moment, Vi realised something:

“You know you’re the first member of the crew who has not made any comment about the whole ‘banned-from-engines’ thing.”

Eve looked at her again, with that smile slowly turning to a smirk.

“Some of us like to get to know people before the mockery commences.”

Vi opened her mouth to respond, only for the elevator to stop at the Engineering level. Eve winked at her and stepped out into the forbidden zone.

As the doors closed in front of Vi, she felt herself pout. Truly, she was alone among enemies… or at least people who enjoyed reminding her of her culpability in Sevika’s condition. If Vi was honest with herself, her discomfort at the jokes about her responsibility for Sevika’s arm really did bug her. She had to make a call to save Sevika’s life or let her die with her arm intact. She honestly thought she made the right decision. Better to live in pieces than die whole, right?

That was right up until she had visited Sevika in the hospital. Ignoring her apologies, Sevika had grabbed her with her remaining claw, pulled her close, and swore that the next time she saw Vi would be the last time Vi saw anything. From then on, she had avoided certain parts of the Attican Traverse, places where Sevika had been rumoured to be building a team for running cargo and transport operations between non-council space and the outer systems.

It was part of why Omega was so much a home to her – knowing that Sevika was a dead Turian walking if she ran anywhere near any Blood Pack members had pushed Vi to regions where the Blood Pack was known to haunt. Still, Vi deep down wished for the tension to resolve. She kept throwing verbal jabs at Sevika – it was how she and Sevika used to talk to one another. Perhaps she hoped that it would soften the cargo captain, remind her that before it all went down, they had a good, albeit mutually disrespectful, working relationship.

Maybe this time it would be different. There was no end limit to this contract, no chance for Sevika to absolutely avoid her. The deal Mel had struck had a baked in ‘co-operation clause’ for them both, requiring regular mediated sessions where Vi shared her insights from her fieldwork on Omega to Sevika and in response, Sevika was to offer her expertise as the person with the most contacts across the galaxy.

Vi wondered if Caitlyn would also be expected to attend. That would be nice. She still wasn’t sure exactly what to make of Caitlyn as a squad leader, but she knew that, in the middle of the unrepentant flirting, there was probably a good person to have onside there. Alliance command was always well trained, and C-Sec would have made her thinking more flexible.

The elevator doors opened to a much more populated (and loud) quarters and mess to the one she and Caitlyn had left. A large balding man with long sideburns and an eyepatch stood next to the port side of the mess, scooping something that looked suspiciously like risotto out of a deep stockpot into a plate held by a Salarian she had seen in the hanger moving crates. On the starboard side of the mess was Sevika, ladling something that looked similarly grain-based into a small bowl for Lucanius the navigator, who nodded his thanks. Every space on the couches and table was taken up by crew members, all eating, drinking and chatting, a comforting murmur of conversation that honestly felt like home. The air smelled delicious, warm spices and comfort mixing with the less familiar but no less delightful scents of dextro ingredients. Her mouth watered.

Surely the shower could wait?

Over the crowd, the man with the eyepatch called out:

“Hey! You! Go shower. We ain’t havin’ you stinkin’ up our mess!” Seeing Vi’s confused face, the man chortled. “You won’t miss shit. Crew eats first; team eats second. Especially when we’re docked at a major station and the captain wants us underway ASAP.”

Vi opened her mouth to object only for Sevika to interrupt:

“You heard the man,” She sounded positively jovial, fucking damn it. “This is Jericho’s realm. If it’s mess time and if he says ‘go shower’, you better fucking shower.”

There was a loud roar of laughter and snickers from the crew, who had caught onto the exchange. Vi felt her face go hot. Then, to make things worse, one of the doors on the portside opened and a dark cobalt head of hair stuck out, a quizzical expression on her beautiful face. Vi caught a glimpse of a large orange holo board behind her, before the door closed as Caitlyn stepped out, a data pad in hand.

She had let her hair down again and gotten changed. Gone was the black t-shirt, blue combat jacket and BDU pants. Instead, she wore a purple singlet, with a loose dark blue hoodie open at the front, and a pair of soft black cargos. Vi clocked the combat boots still on her feet – clearly Caitlyn did not like getting caught without the ability to kick some shit in. Still Vi’s breath caught in her throat. Seeing Caitlyn in something resembling a uniform was hot. This… this was a whole different dimension. There was a level of comfort and softness here. Something inviting and relaxing. Like making love in the morning in a sun-dappled apartment as the world outside the walls melted away. Her pulse thudded in her veins.

Caitlyn looking for the cause of the disturbance with curious eyes, before that gaze softened when she realised that the object of mirth was Vi. Then the expression flickered, as Vi noticed that keen observational gaze sweep down her sweaty form. Instinctively, she shifted a little, newly sore muscles rippling with the movement, letting Caitlyn see that, yeah, she had the goods. As a reward, she saw Caitlyn lick her lips briefly, before she raised her voice in a reply:

“I’m sorry to be that kind of person but could we please keep the noise down a little for a short while?” she questioned, with a warm polite tone. “I am in the middle of sifting through the information given to me by Mel Medarda, and I can promise you, a human trying to understand an Asari’s way of arranging dossiers is somewhat…”

“Complex?” came a cheeky comment from a light blue Asari, sitting at next to Scar the Salarian, her eyes twinkling. Vi wondered if she was part of the engineering crew with Eve, or if she served on the bridge.

“Obtuse,” Caitlyn shot back, although she had an easy and amused expression on her face. “I promise you, once I’m done, I’ll never ask for silence again.”

“You know you could just turn on the noise dampeners. We do have sound proofing available on all the cabins,” Sevika called out, with an unreadable expression Vi took to mean I am bantering with you, but you’d better remember whose ship you’re on.

Caitlyn inclined her head in response, that same expression growing more relaxed. Vi was astonished. The Caitlyn she had seen before was brittle. Fragile. Blunt and cutting and unwilling to stoop to use her position over others. This Caitlyn - team leader Caitlyn - appeared to handle the disruption with the ease of a high-level CO or gang leader, with one foot in camaraderie and the other in efficiency.

It was… inspiring. Natural and charismatic. A complete shift in behaviour that seemed to be wholly Caitlyn. Vi realised she was seeing what Mel probably saw.

What Mel had used to keep herself alive.

“To be honest, I did consider it,” Caitlyn’s response gave away no sense of discomfort or stress. It was almost chilling in the face of Sevika’s probing subtext. “But I do like the hum of a strong and loyal crew when I’m working. Reminds me of being in the Alliance. It’s nice to hear, just not when it rises to a level that shakes my focus.”

The energy in the mess shifted, filling with pride. Damn right we’re strong, Vi could almost hear them say. We’d kill for the Sinestrus. We’d die for the Sinestrus. Even Sevika stood a little straighter, that unreadable expression growing even more opaque. Vi swallowed.

Holy shit. Mel did find the best of the best for this.

Vi was screwed. If this Caitlyn even got a hint of what she knew - and if what she knew was relevant - she stood no chance. She’d better not slip up. And she’d sure as shit better figure out who was involved in the theft and smuggling of the dumb prothean thingy before Caitlyn did.

Back in reality, Vi saw Sevika’s eyes flick around the crew. Vi realised that Sevika had also clocked Caitlyn’s natural ability to unit and unify a team, while ensuring she got what she needed. To Vi’s horror, Sevika threw a wink of all things at Caitlyn, before turning back to her crew.

“You heard the client,” Sevika commanded in response. “Keep it to a dull roar. Ambience has been requested.”

There was a chuckle from the crew again, and while the conversation returned, it was kept to a more manageable level. Sevika gestured towards Caitlyn with her ladle:

“Kirramman, you, Vi, Medarda, Talis, Dinga and Caalan nar Hidor can all eat after we’re done. I like to have my crew fed and settled so we can take off.”

First thing, Vi noticed was that Sevika respected her choice in name. It was a nice surprise. However, Vi also did not recognise two of the names listed after: Dinga sounded Krogan or Salarian, and Caalan Nar Hidor was absolutely a quarian name.

Caitlyn, however, didn’t seem to need clarification. Vi found herself wonder what Caitlyn knew that she didn’t. The baddie investigator, however, appeared completely in the loop:

“Understandable. Please forgive me again for intruding on your crew’s meal.”

Sevika made a dismissive gesture with the ladle once more, before returning to the pot of food, dealing herself out a serve. Caitlyn nodded to her once, before shooting Vi a wickedly hot stare, before returning to her room, the door sliding shut behind her. Vi exhaled the breath she didn’t realise she had been holding. Walking through the crew, she stood before the door to her quarters. Funnily enough, she had not checked them out yet, despite the fact the upgrade was her favourite part of the deal, especially with how much it appeared to irk Sevika. With a wave of her hand, the door lock turned green and slid open.

Vi’s breath caught again, except this time, it was less “fuck Caitlyn Kirramman is so hot” and more “how the fuck did Sevika afford to kit this place out?”

The quarters were - there was no other term for it - luxurious. The floor was carpeted in an earthy dark brown, warm and inviting. An opulent embossed bar welcomed her, underlit in a soft yellow light. A soft-looking brown leather couch with an immaculately styled coffee-table faced the giant starboard viewing port that took up the entire wall offering a panoramic view. Next to the bar was a small desk, with a personal terminal and a controller for a sound system. There was climate control, viewport shutter and light controls next to the door, as well as a panel on one of the bedside tables, which were examples of excellent carpentry in a dark brown wood with gold fittings.

The room stretched towards the fore of the frigate, with a soft looking plush queen-sized bed next to a built-in wardrobe. Next to the wardrobe was a door that led to the ensuite, which appeared to have been stylishly designed with cream and sand-coloured hexagonal tiles, and a waterfall showerhead. The space, despite the expensive textiles and gleaming cream and gold trimmings felt welcoming and inviting, rich but not tasteless.

Vi was gobsmacked. She was going to sleep in here. Her, the mercenary who often caught naps on whatever soft surface she could find, be that a capsule hotel on a space station, the back of a shuttle across two seats, or the small hole in the wall apartments she would rent on Omega in the short term. It was fucking wild to think about. No wonder Sevika had pushed back so hard – clearly there was only one VIP cabin available. While Vi was its occupant, there was always a chance that this immaculate space could be damaged or ruined, and Vi didn’t want to think about how much cleaning these carpets cost.

With a chuckle, she moved to the wardrobe to check on the civvies situation. Sure enough, there were a pair of dark brown joggers, a white undershirt, a grey short sleeved hoodie and clean underwear, bra and socks. Vi’s brows furrowed – she’d expected something way less her style. Next to them were a pair of work boots in tan, which looked to be about her size. It was uncanny.

Then she saw the powered down data pad tucked under the boots. Turning it on with her thumb, Vi read the message and laughed:

If you’re gonna be on my ship, keep yourself fucking clean. Laundry goes in the chute next to the bathroom.

 - S

PS: if you ruin the carpet, I will ruin your life.

Maybe they weren’t on such bad terms after all.

Grabbing the soft white towel that was folded on the bed, Vi obeyed the commands, shucking her boots and tucking them into the wardrobe on the shoe rack. She then got to work unbuckling the webbing straps she wore over her outfit, getting out of the armoured pants, undershirt, bra, socks, and underwear, and flicking all her garments into the chute that was on the wall beside the door to the bathroom. Naked, she wandered into the tiled space with a warmed floor, turned the music player to something driving and synth-forward and set the temperature of the shower to hot but not scalding.

The pressure of the shower was perfect against her muscles. While she was fit and strong, she wasn’t inhuman, and exercise would still cause some stiffness and soreness. Plus, the cell that Caitlyn had plucked her from didn’t exactly have a comfortable place to sit and relax. C-Sec considered convict comfort second to convict confession, it seemed.

Thinking of Caitlyn caused a shiver to run through her body. The woman was just so fucking perfect, from top to bottom. And what a bottom it was, curved but firm, perfectly balanced by her tits, which were just as perfectly shaped. It wasn’t just the physical attributes though. Vi could tell that Caitlyn, when focussed, was unstoppable. Those blue eyes, focussed and icy cold, the set of her jaw, the set of her shoulders… How she sounded when she brought down her authority, how she could switch to camaraderie without compromise.

It was insane how magnetic Vi found her. And, based on Caitlyn’s reactions, it was at least somewhat mutual. Vi turned, letting the water hit her hair and reached for what seemed to be some ostentatiously expensive shampoo. She really hadn’t had a proper clean down in a long time, and she was absolutely going to take advantage. Hair thoroughly lathered; Vi felt more of the tension in her muscles shift somewhat down lower. Her mind kept replaying the details of Caitlyn over and over. How long her fingers were. How her voice would get lower and throatier when she was emphatic about something. About how she would use her height to tower when she needed to. The soft but firm grip she took on Vi’s arm when escorting her in handcuffs. The way that her teeth bit into her lower lip, quick yet undeniable.

Vi’s mind went into fantasy. She imagined that sensation on her own lips, the feel of that lean muscle under her hands, those legs wrapped around her hips, around her shoulders, those long fingers in her hair, guiding her lower. She wondered how Caitlyn tasted, whether she would chase her desire, or shy away from it, needing to stay in control. How her skin would feel under Vi’s hands. There was such a temptation to give into her imagination – to relieve the pressure building between her thighs. No one would know. Her quarters were sound dampened by design, and the music was loud enough to cover anything else...

But Vi knew if she did that, if she gave in right now and let the fantasy take over, she would have to go out afterwards for mealtime and, in doing so, would inevitably look Caitlyn in the eye.

And she was so worried that the keen-eyed investigator would see right through her.

Vi didn’t know whether the thought was alluring or horrifying. She gathered that there was attraction there, but there was something within their dynamic that made her feel like mere physical reactiveness was just part of a puzzle where she didn’t have the full view. She didn’t even know if Caitlyn was into women, or if she was just an exception to the rule. It had happened before. Women found her unique appearance and quick wit a welcome holiday from their normal choice of partners, and Vi was always a fan of offering alternative experiences. For some reason though, she found herself hesitating. Maybe it was the stakes at hand. Things were complicated enough as it was. Vi might be in the most beautiful quarters she’d ever negotiated, but she also had another motive.

Protect them. Protect her.

Vi was aware that smuggling highly contentious items to and from Omega usually had limited avenues. The likelihood that certain individuals were involved in this somehow was too damn high for Vi’s taste. Especially given that their last encounter did not end the most positively. Thinking of the whole situation served the dual purpose of calming Vi’s desire. She felt her lips turn into a rueful smirk.

Self cockblocking? That’s a new one.

Leaving all thoughts of desire behind, Vi washed her hair out, applied conditioner, stretched for a bit under the hot water, then rinsed out her hair again and stepped out of the shower, wrapping herself in the soft towel. She found a spare towel under the sink and rubbed her pink hair dry, before running her fingers through some product and breaking it up into its requisite thick tousled spikes that flopped from the side of her head that was shaved.

 A smear of eyeliner, smudged of course, some underarm deodorant, and she was ready for her fresh clothing.

Pulling on the clean-smelling gear, Vi found herself feeling increasingly at home in the luxurious quarters she’d managed to get assigned. The couch will be perfect for relaxing on with a cool drink. The desk had space for whatever knick-knacks she decided she wanted to grab from her cache on Omega. The bar gave her all kinds of ideas for socialisation – Vi wasn’t a super sophisticated type but she did know her way around a bar and a mess.

The thought of asking Jericho for access to the main mess for her to flex her culinary skills made Vi chuckle to herself. She might have only met the man once, but she knew his type. While Sevika may be the captain of the Sinestrus, Jericho was the commander of the kitchen area. He would be a good person to become friends with.

Speaking of, her stomach had started to growl. It was well beyond time to deal with that human need, as opposed to any others. Lacing up the work boots, Vi stood from the end of the bed and made her way out into the main quarters once more. There were a few stragglers from the main crew finishing up dinner, Eve among them. She waved a fork at Vi, with her mouth full, before standing and dropping her plate onto the rack that would go into the levo-amino dishwasher. Vi was very pleased to see that Jericho took the cross-contamination issue very seriously. In her experience, not every cook did so.

“Friend of yours?”

Vi turned to see Caitlyn, who had emerged from her quarters. Vi smirked.

“Nah, ran into her in the elevator, just met her then,” Vi replied. “Only member of the crew who’s first comment to me wasn’t related to machines, engines or Sevika’s arm.”

Caitlyn smiled, fondly.

“Must be a nice change.”

“Hey, don’t think I’m gonna let you off that easy, Vi.” Eve approached the two of them, hands in her pockets casually. “As I said, wanted to introduce myself to you first, given I’m not gonna see much of you… Y’know, since you’re banned from my level.”

Vi scowled as Caitlyn chuckled.

“Engineering?” she questioned. Eve nodded. Caitlyn returned the nod with another friendly smile. “I might have some questions for you. I’m in the process of planning some modifications for a Piltover Corporation HexTech omni-tool.”

Eve inhaled through her teeth.

“A HexTech? Rare release. How’d you get one of those?”

“Unfortunately, I had an in with the CEO of Piltover.” A pause, before Caitlyn almost grimaced: “I’m Caitlyn Kirramman.”

Was that a tremor Vi heard in Caitlyn’s voice? Vi held her breath as Eve’s face appeared to shutter. The normally open and friendly expression closed, becoming cold and distant. Vi frowned. Caitlyn had been nothing but friendly. What was with the attitude?

“Oh.” The warm tone Eve had previously was gone. “I see. Well, unfortunately, I don’t see any way that I can help you. Ever. Catch you, Vi.”

The engineer exited, without a look back. It was odd. Eve had been nothing but friendly, but the minute she knew who Caitlyn was, she turned to stone. The rudeness was shocking. Concerned, Vi glanced at Caitlyn sideways. She looked still, carved out of ice. But her hands shook.

“Hey cupcake.” Vi nudged her. “You ok?”

“You would think I had gotten used to that,” Caitlyn replied, her tone casual. Vi would have been convinced except for the tenseness of her body.

“I’d say you got off easy,” Sevika had clearly overheard, approaching from the dextro side of the mess. “Eve’s a live wire. I’m surprised she didn’t try to pop you one.”

“I gather Eve is ex-alliance?” Caitlyn kept her voice level.

“Worse. Colony refugee.”

Caitlyn inhaled through her teeth. Vi noticed that her shoulders stiffened further. What the hell had even happened?

“Which colony?” The words were chipped and controlled.

“Not Topside,” Sevika explained, her voice as close to sympathetic as Vi had ever heard it. “But still lost a lot to pirates, including her freedom for a while. She also used to run with some ex-alliance mercenaries who had been part of the recovery crew from Topside.”

“Ah yes, the Marines who saw me at my absolute worst,” Caitlyn growled. “That’s just great.”

Vi immediately wondered what Caitlyn’s absolute worst was. She knew the scuttlebutt, and wondered just how accurate it was, especially give the level of rule breaking Caitlyn engaged in to get her out of C-Sec, without even breaking a sweat. The woman was truly a mystery – born to rich folk earthside, slummed it with the Alliance, couldn’t get the job done without the help of the Asari, and failed as a C-Sec officer, all while appearing to be a figurehead who could unite a room of raucous hard-living space adventurers with a smile and a kind word.

“If she bugs you too much, let me know,” Sevika offered. “While I have no problem with people having personal issues with clients…”

She shot a look at Vi, who fought the urge to poke her tongue out in response.

“… This is not so much a personal issue as rumour mongering and I won’t have you undermined by my crew, just as I hope I won’t be undermined by your team.”

Vi watched the subtle warning sink into Caitlyn’s mind. It was clear Sevika, while wanting to respect Caitlyn as leader for the ground team, had also noticed the level of control she could exert over the crew without much effort. Add in Vi’s own history, and she couldn’t doubt that there was absolutely an issue of command here.  And Caitlyn seemed to feel it too. She had gone pale, blue eyes flicking around the space somewhat. Vi was fascinated by what appeared to be an internal struggle, between who Caitlyn could be, and who she felt like she was. Instinctively, Vi nudged the taller woman, before interjecting to shield her:

“You know me, Sevika. I’ll behave when I have to,” she commented lightly. “Especially if you get me civvies as comfortable as this.”

The tension in the air lifted. Caitlyn’s eyes flicked over Vi’s new clothing and as she drank in the new look, she appeared to relax. Her jaw loosened, her expression softening. There was a sense of gratitude in her, a soft thank you that Vi clocked coming from her eyes that she winked at in response.

Sevika was typical in her response:

“Mhm. You’ll behave and I’ll date a vorcha.”

Turning, she looked at the remained stragglers in the mess, who had been doing a terrible job of appearing to mind their own business.

“All of you. Finish up, clean up and take stations. We launch as soon as I get the clear from all levels.”

She lifted her mechanical arm and the omni tool lit up. Bringing it close to her mouth, Sevika paused, eyes on Vi and Caitlyn with an unreadable yet amused light, before her mandibles flared in a Turian grin and Vi immediately felt apprehensive.

Something was about to make them all very uncomfortable

“Attention all passengers.”

Yep. There it was.

Vi jumped as the broadcast doubled up in her ear. She felt Caitlyn also tense again as she pulled her blue-black hair behind an ear bearing a gold commlink with blue LEDs. Sevika shot them both a look that was part apology, part amusement.

“We will be launching shortly. We will also be feeding you at the same time. Be grateful for our onboard gravity systems and Scar’s ability to drive this boat like a cloud. If you take too long, starve. Crew, man positions.”

“Did you really have to do that?” Vi complained, rubbing her earlobe. Obviously, Sevika had a strong enough algorithm to crack both hers and Caitlyn’s commlinks while aboard. That or Jayce had shared the access codes, the fucker. Sevika snorted.

“Consider it a reminder of who is the boss of this ship. Also, you’re welcome for the civvies. Jericho?”

The eye-patched man looked up from his meal.

“Got enough grub for three humans, one asari, one krogan and one quarian?” Sevika didn’t so much ask as snipe. Jericho scoffed in response, swallowing his food before replying:

“All of that and a partridge in a pear tree, Sevika.”

The turian snorted.

“Y’know I don’t understand that reference. Just make sure they’re fed. I’m going to the CIC.”

As Sevika moved to the elevator, it opened to both Jayce and an old Krogan. Sevika jumped a little and stepped out of the way.

“Fucks sake, Heim, you don’t have to be so…”

“Krogan?” the reply came in an amused grumble as they exited the elevator cabin.

“Krogan, big, intimidating…” Sevika listed with sarcasm. “Yeah, whatever you wanna call it…”

“It’s not my fault Turians have an instinctive reaction to my race.”

“Shut the fuck up, you know what you all did to us.”

Heim chuckled as they passed and the elevator closed, taking the Turian to the bridge. Jayce smiled first at Caitlyn, then at Vi.

“All settled in?” he asked, charm oozing from his every pore. Caitlyn nodded, with a relieved smile.

“Yes, the holo board is working well, and I mostly have Mel’s records in my own system. Mostly. Asari have a bizarre approach to archiving information, I swear.”

“There is nothing wrong with the way in which I maintain records,” Mel’s voice came from the office as it opened, having overhead the last comment.

“Mel, you use a strange reference system to Noxian-style Siari Pantheism,” Caitlyn countered, arms folding although her expression was amused. “I don’t study Asari Religion. I am-was a soldier.”

“And a damn good engineering mind,” Jayce contributed. Caitlyn flushed and Vi thought she looked adorable.

The med bay door then opened and a male quarian in brown and dark grey entered. Vi noticed Jayce’s face suddenly shift to intense focus. She raised an eyebrow at him, and Jayce, to his credit, smoothed out the expression back to his normal smarmy smirk.

“I hear there was a meal to be had?” The quarian asked. “I do hope I am not late.”

“Not at all,” Jayce replied, easily. “Especially if we have a name to put to a friend.”

The Quarian chuckled. Vi saw Jayce’s smile widen. Oh this would be interesting…

“I am Viktor’Caalan nar Hidor,” the Quarian said, voice calm and warm. “A pleasure to meet the rest of the team.”

Chapter Text

The food was outstanding. A risotto, with what appeared to be chicken and mushrooms, although Caitlyn knew the likelihood of those ingredients being probably some alien equivalent was very high. Jericho had doled them out from the same pot as the crew, before offering Viktor a sterilised and sealed thick soup that had been heated up by Sevika. The giant eye-patched cook then cleaned up his station and told them to dump the dishes on the rack and wipe down the table when they were done before taking his leave to assist in the launch protocols.

Viktor had accepted the dextro-meal gratefully, using a large-sterilised straw. Caitlyn was surprised to see him sit with the crew and eat, having thought he would return to his med bay, where he seemed comfortable. The Quarian appeared to catch her quizzical gaze, and Caitlyn saw his head rise.

“In my time on pilgrimage, I have found it best to socialise at all opportunities with a crew,” he explained, by way of guessing her curiosity. “It reminds me of being on the Flotilla.”

 “Are all quarians that social?” Jayce asked, hazel eyes shining. Viktor nodded.

“We are a society bound by interpersonal relationships for our survival. Of course we are social. Community is everything to us.”

Jayce rested his chin in a hand, leaving his food still mostly untouched. He had been peppering Viktor with questions about his life, his expertise, the use of biotics and pretty much anything else the human CEO could think of. To Viktor’s credit, he had been taking the questions in stride, willingly offering information about his upbringing, his life on the Flotilla and his studies of medicine. Caitlyn was surprised by the depth of his knowledge until Viktor explained that his father was the head of medicine for one of the larger ships in the Flotilla. In his words he was ‘raised with the passion for healing’.

As Jayce continued to prod and question Viktor, Caitlyn’s eyes glanced around the table at her team, stocktaking their abilities and skills. She had their dossiers, sure, but Caitlyn always trusted her own judgements to supplement the information on paper…

Mel and Heim were chatting casually about some small detail from the Krogan Rebellions. Strangely, it was Mel who was pushing the conversation, with Heim providing context for cultural decisions made, and rationale behind strategic movements. The conversation was one Caitlyn would have found incredibly interesting except for the fact that the references Heim was making were becoming increasingly obscure. He was speaking quickly, following random tangents and making references to older technologies that made Caitlyn’s head spin. Either Mel was incredibly well read or was poker-facing her way through the ultimate information dump.

The fact that Heim had this knowledge pointed to some military experience, or study. As a Krogan, Heim was physically imposing. However, his knowledge of strategy and technology also appeared to be endless, reaching from hand-to-hand skirmishes right up to long range vehicular combat and space battles. He would be an endless resource for clarifying her approaches in differing environments, and approaching gear customisation from a different perspective. The physicality and age were also a blessing. Should she need someone able to command respect from scholars or commanders, Heim was her Krogan.

Mel, she already had somewhat of a measure of. Biotically powerful, incredible manipulative, ambitious beyond compare. She was a lone wolf, a huntress without a squad. Her, Caitlyn would have to deploy in specific circumstances, where single targets needed to be prioritised. That or if she needed a face to talk their way into restricted areas, either by status or bluff. So long as Mel kept herself in the grey, she was incredibly flexible in deployment. Her weakness would be her judgement – in prioritising the goal, Mel might sacrifice the overall team. Caitlyn would have to watch Mel carefully to ensure she did not paint them into a corner where the hard choices had to be made, even with the best of intentions.

Jayce - who had finally started eating his food - was interesting. In the past, she would have not considered him for any groundwork, given his propensity for getting lost in the weeds of a project. However, he was the founder of a technology company – a role that requires charisma as well as the metal to back it up when pushed by competitors. When they had caught up before being interrupted, he had mentioned experimenting with creating energy blasts from the discharge of heatsinks within melee weapons as a self-defence tool. He could be useful in pro-human spaces where they needed to appear completely incognito or covered by his reputation as the man of progress. He had also proudly told her that Heim had been teaching him how to fight and that alone something worth investigating, if not for the entertainment factor.

Viktor was an enigma. Quarians might be susceptible to illness, but they also had a reputation for being incredibly tough to kill. His biotics, while somewhat unknown, pointed to potential for single target elimination, if he was willing to do harm. He too would also have survival training, as part of his upbringing and his long Pilgrimage. But Caitlyn suspected his use was more for patching them all up after they got into messes. She had also noticed Jayce’s interest in the quarian, which she earmarked for mockery later. Jayce was not discerning in his taste of lovers, and both Mel (who had also shown interest) and Viktor more than suited to what she knew of his previous relationships.

Perhaps that was the use – as something to galvanise and focus her friend. Immediately, she shoved the thought away. That was a level of manipulation she was deeply uncomfortable with. Best leave that type of thinking to Mel. Instead, she turned her attention to Vi…

Who was shovelling the food into her mouth with absolutely no manners or sense of decorum, paying no attention to the conversations around her. Caitlyn bit the inside of her cheek to avoid smiling but couldn’t help the comment that slipped out:

“I’m guessing the C-Sec rations were not to your liking?”

Vi paused briefly with a ‘huh?’ garbled by the mouthful of rice she had just almost inhaled, before coughing slightly as she swallowed. She then smirked at Caitlyn.

“Most food I’ve eaten in the last 18 months was not to my liking.”

“What is your favourite food?” Viktor interjected. “The human diet is always a fascinating discussion.”

Vi stuck her tongue in her cheek and Caitlyn could hear the comment before it had even been made. She tried to interrupt:

“Don’t you…”

“I’m partial to cupcakes, to be honest.” Vi’s eyes gleamed mischievously. “They’re just so sweet. The perfect mouthful. I know it takes some effort to prepare them, but God, it’s always so worth it.”

Vi, not breaking eye contact, swiped a finger through the remains left on her plate and sucked it, lips tightening around the digit. Caitlyn fought the heat rising in her face.

She saw Jayce’s expression shift playfully as he caught her eye and opened his mouth. If there was an ability to sink into the floor of the spaceship, Caitlyn absolutely would have taken a level or two in it. She was saved from responding by the sound of Scar coming over the shared comms line:

“We’re set for take-off. Those of you still eating, hold onto your plates. I’m doing what I can buuuuuut…” There was a crackle as he paused, playfully. “Sevika is keeping a C-Sec Official on hold, and I dunno how much more time we can buy before they stop asking questions and start demanding answers.”

There was a shudder throughout the ship, and Caitlyn felt the buoyed feeling of gravity generation slowly pressing them down. The was the familiar clank of the docking mechanisms detaching from the Sinestrus. The ship dipped slightly, and Caitlyn felt the vehicle turn. Gripping her half-finished plate, she waited for the shift of the ship’s power to be shifted from the docking thrusters to the main engine.

There was a second, larger shudder through the chassis and Caitlyn had to take a bracing breath and tighten her core to stop herself from being pressed back into her chair.

Holy shit, what kind of engine did this thing even have?!

She wasn’t alone. Vi had reached out a hand to grip one of the bolted legs of the table, Jayce had gone pale, pushing himself firmly upright. Heim, and Mel appeared to stiffen, bracing themselves using different tactics. The only one who seemed completely calm was Viktor, who seemed to calmly slurp from his soup container. The gravity dampeners seemed to whine as the frigate turned on a dime and rapidly coasted away from the Citadel. Then, there was another shift in the ship, and everything seemed to restore to normal. There was another crackle as comms opened again.

“Sorry about that,” Scar didn’t sound sorry at all. “Sevika just told C-Sec to go fuck themselves, so I figured fast was better than comfortable. We’re heading towards the relay and will be out of C-Sec space within the next few minutes.”

There was another beep as the comms line was closed, and Caitlyn noticed her team slowly exhale. Jayce ran his hand through his hair.

“Well, that’s not my normal level of space travel comfort,” he commented, face still pale. Caitlyn heard Viktor chuckle:

“Try travelling in the cargo bay of a Volus Frigate with limited gravity dampening.” He sipped his soup as everyone turned to stare at him. Noticing the attention, he shrugged a little. “They don’t really trust Quarians, even if we’re offering our services in healing or engineering.”

“How did you handle being thrown around like that?” Mel questioned. Before Viktor could answer, Heim snorted.

“Quarian environmental suits are designed to be robust. I guess our friend here handed any remnants of pain or contusions on his own.”

Jayce’s eyes widened as Viktor shrugged once more, going back to his soup. Caitlyn watched with keen interest as Jayce’s eyes traced Viktor, appearing to look at his environmental suit in a new light. There was a silence, before Viktor coughed and put his soup down, the container empty.

“Thank you for allowing me to sit with you. It is nice to be part of a crew again.”

“Anytime,” Caitlyn replied, scraping the last of her dinner onto her fork, focussing on her posture and comportment. While she was an efficient eater, manners that had been trained into her since birth demanded a sense of propriety. “I think mealtimes with the team is always a good idea.”

“Of that, we are in agreement.” Viktor stood, picking up his container. “Please excuse me. I have some… well, tinkering I need to do with the Med Bay equipment.”

Caitlyn could see the glow of his eyes beneath his mask shift towards Heim.

“I need to ensure we are set for all members of the team and crew, which will require some minor adjustment.”

“Would you mind if I came with you?” Jayce asked, also standing. “I am so curious as to how you have… overcome the issue of needing complete sterilisation.”

Caitlyn grimaced. That wasn’t the politest way of asking that particular question. To her surprise, Viktor gave another chuckle:

“Ah yes, well, it does take some doing. I would be most willing to let you in on my secrets, though.”

Heim also stood. Caitlyn was slightly surprised to see a curiosity in his eyes as well, a strange look for a Krogan to have. In her peripheral, she noticed Mel was looking closely for Caitlyn’s reaction, instead of the three team members who appeared single minded about inspecting some new or novel form of technology. She smoothed her face, taking the opportunity to finish her food. Even though Mel had said that she was willing to hand the reins over, Caitlyn was sceptical as to the extent of control. Her previous experience of Asari command was that they led from the shadows, and she would be damned if she let that happen here...

“This, I must see,” Heim rumbled, grabbing both his and Jayce’s plates, his finished and Jayce's with a few mouthfuls leftover. “I’ll take care of this and meet you both in there?”

The human and quarian nodded and began to make their way to the med bay, Jayce slinging a friendly arm around Viktor’s shoulders. For a Krogan, Heim was nimble, the plates rinsed and put on the dish rack for sterilisation quickly, before he too lumbered towards the door, nodding in passing to Mel, Vi, and Caitlyn.

There was a pause.

“Well. They’re weird.” Vi broke the silence, leaning over her polished plate, one hand dangling the fork in front of her. To Caitlyn’s surprise, Mel laughed:

“Three of the brightest minds in the galaxy across their various fields, and all you can say is they’re weird?”

Vi shrugged one shoulder and Caitlyn fought the thought of how attractive the casual gesture was.

“I call it like I see it, Asari.”

 “It isn’t unusual for genius intellects to be somewhat… eccentric,” Caitlyn explained, feeling a little defensive of Jayce. Vi shot her a lopsided smile.

“You would know, princess, you’re the one with the dossiers.”

“Please don’t call me that,” Caitlyn asked, trying not to sound rattled. “I’ll accept ‘cupcake’, purely out of necessity, but ‘princess’ is just a bit too… painful.”

As Vi’s eyes narrowed inquisitively, Caitlyn fought the urge to sink back into her thoughts, her memories of her squad on Topside’s ribbing and mockery.

“Betcha she’s too good to get her hands dirty.”

“No wonder she’s a sniper – hates being down in the dirt with the rest of us.”

“Princess Kirramman, descending from Piltover Corporation to try and tell us how to do our jobs…”

Shaking the memories off, she smiled as calmly as she could. Vi didn’t look convinced:

“Your poker face needs some work, Cupcake. Wanna talk about it?”

“And that is my cue to make myself scarce,” Mel commented, standing and taking all the remaining plates. “I am sure if Caitlyn was willing to open up about this, having me here would be counterintuitive.”

“Mel, it’s ok,” Caitlyn protested, only to have the Asari smirk.

“You know you need to tell someone on the team sometime,” Mel countered, moving towards the mess. “You have all the information on them. It is only fair that they have some information on you.”

Quickly, she too cleaned the plates before walking to her office. Caitlyn sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She hated to admit it, but Mel was right – she needed the trust from this team, needed someone in the mix who would back her in the field, no matter what. She had Jayce, sure, but he would be more likely to be shipside for most operations. She knew so much about Vi’s history from the dossier, and from the slip ups and conversations. It needed to be quid pro quo. Vi, to her credit, was saying nothing. Not a quip, nor a comment. Just a patiently waiting expression, posture relaxed yet with a hint of inquisitiveness. Caitlyn sighed.

“How much do you know about my time on Topside?” she asked Vi, who gave another relaxed shrug.

“The normal scuttlebutt – you’re either a cowardly turncoat in bed with the Asari, a cold-hearted efficient killer willing to sacrifice anything to get the job done, or one of the biggest unspoken heroes of the Alliance.”

Caitlyn scoffed. Yeah, that sounded about right. Leaning forwards, she began to pick at her fingernails, nervously. She felt Vi’s eyes flick down to her hands, before her eyebrows furrowed again, that storm-coloured gaze returning to her face.

“Caitlyn?” Vi’s tone was softer than Caitlyn had heard before. “You haven’t let those comments get to you yet. Even Eve, you managed to shrug off. What’s going on?”

“It’s a lot to run away from.” Caitlyn was horrified to feel her mouth move without thought. “All of the things I’ve done, the people I’ve lost… the decisions I’ve made. Being reminded has gotten easier but it’s never completely easy, you understand?”

Vi nodded, a strangely shuttered expression moving across her face for a moment, before the openness returned. Caitlyn surmised that she too had regrets. Nevertheless, Caitlyn felt herself compelled to continue:

“I won’t talk too much about things. Honestly, it’s the combination of the shame, and the guilt and injustice that hurts the most. But what is relevant for you to know – you of all people – is how my squad treated me.”

She noticed Vi’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise and smiled, bitterly.

“What, you think that a bunch of Alliance members were understanding of the Corporate Earthborn rich girl who preferred to engage her opponents from afar?”

Vi mouthed a silent ‘o’, before Caitlyn saw her gesture to continue. So, she did:

“I was accused of being snobby because of my comportment, and being overly privileged, because I had the ability to call upon my resources to customise my loadout to make myself more efficient.”

She grimaced, an embarrassed flush rising in her cheeks. Her engineering training from childhood was a major point of contention with the Topside Squad.

“I tried to bond with them all. I ate with them at chow time, I offered to use my connections back on Earth to garner better equipment and load out, I offered to upgrade their equipment. But it was no use…”

She felt herself go a little distant, swallowing to try to wet a suddenly dry throat.

“Not until the pirates raided. Then… Vi, I cannot tell you how hard it was to suddenly feel their trust in me. To have even the most irascible member of my squad look to my leadership, to follow my commands, to put their lives in my hands.”

She sighed, forcing herself to stop picking at her fingernails.

“As the raids went on and we lost ground, there were murmurs that were far worse than being accused of privilege. I was called a coward, for using strategy to make tough calls that saved their lives but sacrificed colonists and ground, or because I was better used as overwatch than supressing fire or on the front line. I was called a turncoat, for attempting to combine our forces with the Asari who had answered our SOS calls in spite of silence from the Council.”

Clenching her hands, she felt herself begin to go cold.

“And it was maddening. I was in command of every skirmish, taking to the field, protecting my people as best I could, making the calls for minimal collateral damage and it was still not enough. The pirates must have had some sort of way into our comms, because they manage to cut off my squad members, isolating them, forcing them to choose between achieving objectives and their own lives.”

Vi’s expression had not changed. She stayed open, only the smallest flicker of thinking in the slight furrow of her brow and a tightness of her lips. Caitlyn felt herself continue.

“And every time, I chose their lives.” She lightly thumped her clenched hands against the table. “Every. Single. Time. Until it was not enough. Until I realised that it was a death of a thousand cuts. The raiders were kidnapping all colonists they ran across. What I was fighting to protect was being decimated.”

Taking a deep breath, she exhaled, feeling the bile of regret burn in her gut, clashing with the cool icing over of her heart.

“And it got worse when Mel informed me that her scouts had reconned the pirate camp out and uncovered a biobomb, capable of neutralising everyone within the colony.”

Vi hissed through her teeth. Caitlyn saw shock in her expression, a widening of the eyes, a tightening of the jaw.

“A fuckin’ biobomb? What the fuck were they thinking?”

Caitlyn shook her head, understanding the response. Possession of something that can level a whole fighting force while leaving buildings intact was beyond illegal. It was considered crossing the line and coming back, especially if hostages were your original goal. Biobombs were rare, incredibly deadly, and would bring the might of the galaxy down upon whoever set one off.

“Honestly, I ask myself that every time I can’t sleep,” Caitlyn sighed. “A biobomb made no sense – the raiders wanted slaves. The move was designed to erase our whole force from the colony. All I can think is that they were under some time pressure.”

“Or maybe the Alliance forces were the original goal?” Vi questioned, tilting her chin down. “Someone wanted to remove the humans but keep the colony?”

“Topside was not an in-demand area for colonisation,” Caitlyn responded, holding herself still as she’d practiced. “Plus, the Alliance had council approval to settle there, especially with Noxus forces to overlook development. Either way, Mel brought me evidence and I realised we had to do something.”

She saw Vi swallow and immediately understood that this was the part of the story Vi was probably most familiar with.

“You used your soldiers as bait so Mel and her commandos could go in and neutralise the pirates?”

“No.” The reply felt definite and firm in Caitlyn’s mouth.

Vi appeared shocked.

“No? But… that’s…”

“That’s what you heard,” Caitlyn replied, going back to picking at her nails. “But the reality was, we had a decent plan. My remaining squad would cause a diversion at one end of the colony, drawing the raiders away. Then Mel’s team would slip in and neutralise the bomb. I had set the generators to explode to cover the only alternative entrance, with me on overwatch in an overlooking tower to hold the waves back. Losses should have been at a minimum.”

“But that’s not what happened,” Vi said, and Caitlyn saw deep sympathy in her face. Caitlyn nodded.

“Something went wrong. Even to this day, I don’t exactly know what. My squad was ambushed and had to collapse the entrance to the colony, with the survivors falling back to the foot of my position. My omni tool lost connection to the server responsible for the generator overloads. There were almost triple the number of raiders as all information had told us, split between the funnel we guarded and pinning Mel’s commandos out of position, unable to make it even to the camp, let alone back. And I did not have enough ammo. I couldn’t… I couldn’t move.”

Vi went pale.

“Oh no.”

Caitlyn took a shaking breath, pushing down her pain. She had spoken about this before, to psychiatrists, to C-Sec, to veterans who demanded answers. But it didn’t make it any easier to admit that she had failed so many people.

“My squad knew I was trapped in the overlook tower, knew Mel’s team had been out manoeuvred, hadn’t even gotten to the bomb to disarm it,” she mumbled. “They… they looked to me to make the call. So, I did.”

She looked down, pushing all reactions down into the soft numb part of her mind. She was not going to break here, not now, not after everything.

“Every single one of the generators had a failsafe code I’d memorised. When I explained to them what I was thinking, they drew straws and asked me for the codes.” 

“Oh Cupcake…” Vi’s voice was wretched. “How… How many?”

“My original command was of thirty individuals, in six squads of five.”

“A big command for only a lieutenant, though?” Vi questioned, puzzled.

Caitlyn scoffed, looking away.

“It was my first formal command, but I had been squad leader before twice, in skirmishes with Batarians and rogue Turians. Captain Grayson was testing my leadership skills, so she said.”

Vi nodded, seemingly to motion her to keep going. Caitlyn sighed again, and met Vi’s eyes, voice hollow as she recited the losses in the ambush.

“After the pirates had demolished them, there were three squads left,” Caitlyn paused, licking her trembling lips. “There were ten generators.”

She met Vi’s eyes, looking for the disgust, the hatred, the accusations. Instead, she saw a deep sense of mourning.

“How many completed the objective?” Vi whispered with dread.

“All of them,” Caitlyn replied, plainly. “All of them did their duty. All of them gave me quiet messages for loved ones, told me it was an honour to serve with me. A funny thing to hear from people who had made it clear that they couldn’t stand me.”

“What of Mel?” Vi questioned. “Did she lose anyone?”

“No,” Caitlyn scoffed. “Turns out, the generator explosions caused devastating damage to the enemy numbers. We then had the superior position, a death funnel. The raiders broke position, to try to reinforce the final push into the colony. They were good. But I was better.”

She almost felt the slickness of sweat on her hands, the phantom pain of the glancing blows from shots that had barely missed her, soreness in her shoulder from constant sniper rifle recoil sending the butt of the weapon deep into the joint. The howling of the wind carrying the sounds of explosives and gunfire. Caitlyn shook the feeling away.

“The last five of my command were out of action – various injuries, lack of ammo, the like. I ordered them to fall back, and any target left standing from the generator explosions was taken out by me.”

Vi’s eyes widened. Caitlyn could see the calculations in her head. She lifted a hand.

“Please don’t ask for the headcount. I don’t know how long I was in that tower, or how many people I killed, and I honestly don’t care. All I know is that I came out of the reverie when Mel’s people pulled me out.”

“And the pirates?”

“None survived. I think Mel’s commandos did clean up. That or the Noxus and Alliance who had landed at around the same time routed them. It’s all a bit blurry. I was dehydrated, injured, starved and close to unconsciousness when they retrieved me.”

Vi nodded in understanding. Caitlyn realised she knew how to treat a veteran recalling service. That or she was faking sympathy to get the end of the story. She knew both types of people. Honestly, it didn’t feel much like anything. She was deep in the memories, coated in the ice that she used to shield herself from emotion. The Alliance Military psychiatrists had attempted to help her with more healthy coping mechanisms, but Caitlyn never really got the hang of it. It was better to freeze over than let the guilt in. She’d coped this way since her mother’s death.

“Caitlyn…” Vi finally said. “You couldn’t have known about the ambush, or the numbers. Your info was bad. That doesn’t make your calls wrong.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Caitlyn cut her off. “I had a duty to get it right, to protect these people. I was too desperate to prove myself good in command, to follow protocol, to apply strategy early on to adjust to a force that broke the rules, and it cost my people their lives. I failed people that didn’t even like me.”

“That’s unfair on yourself, Cait.”

“No, Vi, it’s accurate. If I was better, more lateral in my thinking, I could have avoided all of it.”

She found herself standing slowly, legs numb beneath her. Her nose tingled. Her hands felt cold.

“I had a responsibility, and I couldn’t do it. So now you know why being called princess rankles me… No one has earned the right to quote the people I failed.”

Vi nodded in understanding and leaned back in her chair. There was a pause, before she shot Caitlyn a genuine, uncrooked smile. Caitlyn felt her heart skip a beat, the feeling slowly returning to her limbs like a ripple from her chest. Vi was looking at her with brightness in her eyes, a sense of acceptance and a strange warmth.

“Hey, thanks for trusting me, Cait,” Vi said. “I’ll keep the term ‘princess’ out of my mouth for you. You sure ‘Cupcake’ is still ok?”

Caitlyn found herself laughing softly.

“Yes… it feels very you. And I don’t mind that much at all.”

Vi’s smile widened as she stood.

“Hey, you know what? I reckon you’re gonna prove everyone fucking wrong when we save the galaxy. Can’t wait to see C-Sec’s faces when we all get medals for pulling the Asari Republic’s collective ass out of the fire.”

That one got a proper laugh, accompanied by more fluttering in Caitlyn’s stomach. Underneath was an echoed beating of a rapidly increasing heartrate. Caitlyn took one look at Vi’s face, that warm cheeky expression, felt the warmth spread through her body, and immediately realised she was fucking screwed.

God damn it, not now…

Chapter Text

After Caitlyn had told Vi about the Topside Incident, the sniper had spent most of her time in her quarters, only leaving to shower and eat with the team. Vi found herself growing increasingly frustrated. The woman was good company, and very easy on the eyes, but it wasn’t just that. It was like Caitlyn had retreated to a proverbial overwatch position in her mind, inaccessible to Vi’s normal charms. It was infuriating. Even chow time, which usually resulted in fun conversations and anecdotes from the other squad mates, which Caitlyn’s eyes shined at, but she did not contribute to, had become a source of irritation. Originally Vi thought it was perhaps out of respect for the team, but now she had begun to suspect it was Caitlyn’s version of putting distance in between them and that was so damn counterintuitive. Surely Caitlyn wanted the leverage, wanted that closeness.

Wanted her.

At the same time, though, Vi was also keenly aware that there was only so much closeness she could give. Until they got to Omega, and Vi could make sure she was keeping things as they were, the mercenary understood the figures from her past were merely a tissue-paper’s width from their mission – and she also knew tissue paper became fragile when it was drenched in blood. Running into Aria was a given, and probably some of her old connections were kicking around, but Vi would be damned if she’d let it get out of control and revealed things she would rather leave hidden.

It didn’t stop the sinking feeling through. She knew the smuggling scene, knew that the drug manufacturers often doubled up with smuggling to keep credits flowing. And there was one big name that always came up in these discussions - Silco and his Chem-Barons. A weasel of a Salarian, with a cybernetic eye, who was known for having one foot in anti-establishment power struggles and one in maintaining his own slice of the pie. Worse, the Chem-Barons always dealt in red sand derivatives, made by Singed, an infamous batarian chemist known for using his own crew as test subjects. The results of Singed’s experimentations were horrific, to say the least. Vi had put down more than one insane red-sand riddled maniac on Omega. She had also had to retreat from those that kept their sanity. It was an intensely dangerous environment to run an op in, despite who else might potentially be involved.

At the least they had gotten their equipment sorted. The first pick up had been uneventful and the training to test her new toys was incredibly enjoyable. Jayce’s modifications to the training droids and firing range had meant that she could now choose the type of engagement as well as the number.

Unfortunately, as things were, she had to do some paperwork before she was allowed to go back to the training centre, at Caitlyn’s request.

And she always found it hard to say no to a pretty girl.

Vi had been asked for a collection of movers and shakers in smuggling on Omega, a task she’d outwardly agreed to, but inwardly had regrets about. She knew she had to play her cards right, maybe bury certain names, or make sure that she took charge of the questioning. Either way, the Chem-Barons had to go on the list. They were too well known, much to Vi’s chagrin. Still, there had to be some way through.

And at least the mess couches were comfy enough for her to scheme on in style.

“Hey Vi,” a voice came from over her shoulder. Looking up from the data pad she was making notes, Vi smiled as Eve approached her.

“Hey Eve, what’s up?” Vi clicked the data pad off. The engineer flung herself into a nearby chair and exhaled, puffing her cheeks out.

“God, I would murder someone for a beer, a new set of couplings, or both,” Eve exhaled, putting her soot-covered hand over her eyes. “I swear, I look away, and the power drive cables get drunk, have an orgy, and get all messed up and stop talking to one another.”

“Sounds hot,” Vi responded, cheekily. Eve snorted in vague amusement.

“That’s the problem,” she countered, eyes still hidden by a grease-streaked hand. “Temperature fluctuations in one of the drive cores has resulted in a minor misfire, which could cause issues with non FTL acceleration, impacting battle-handling. We’ve ordered a patch set to offset the cooling fault, but a new set of couplings would really nix the problem.”

“Well, I wish you luck.” Vi didn’t understand the technical babble, but she appreciated the frustration.

“Yeah, yeah, thanks.” Eve removed the hand covering her face, leaving a smear of soot across her nose. “I didn’t come up here to bitch about the engine room. Some of us are organising a poker game in the hanger tonight. Beers provided. You in?”

Vi paused. It was tempting. She wasn’t the best gambler, but hanging with a bunch of crewmates, throwing back a few beverages and talking shit would be a lot of fun. However…

“Sounds fun, but I gotta finish this stuff for Caitlyn. Next time?”

A shadow of disgust skittered over Eve’s face.

“Sure thing,” the reply was acidic. “If the princess has you doing her homework for her, guess I can’t fault you for doing your job.”

The nickname burned at Vi. Knowing what she did about Caitlyn’s history, she found herself wanting to tell Eve to shut the fuck up. But given Caitlyn’s current reluctance to be around Vi, she figured that the defence wouldn’t be appreciated if it meant outing what Caitlyn appeared to consider her greatest failures.

Instead, Vi diverted:

“So, aside from busted engineering shit, and gambling, anything else news?”

Eve scoffed.

“On this bucket? Nah, nothing really.” She paused, then continued with a furrowed brow. “Jayce and Viktor keep hounding me for more resourcing of our electrical outputs, but I keep tellin’ them that there’s only so much to go around and Sevika told me that if it was a choice between shields and experimental tech, the shields stay. I suspect she’s expecting some resistance once we get to our second pick up.”

Vi’s ears perked up. Some resistance? Obviously, the interest had appeared on her face, because Eve suddenly went pale.

“Aw fuck, pretend I said nothing, ok? Sevika’ll kill me if she knows I blabbed…”

“What kind of resistance? Blood Pack?” Vi asked. “I know she’s still wanted dead or dead by ‘em.”

Eve sighed and stood, looking around the mess as if she was expecting Sevika to pop out, gun at the ready.

“I’ve already said too much-”

“Hey, in for a chip, in for a credit, right?”

Even stared at Vi in annoyance.

“You really think I’m gonna blab more about the boss’s personal shit, Vi? What kinda crewmate do you take me for?”

“The kind that would provide info to someone who might be able to help?” Vi smirked a little. “I got no love lost for the Blood Pack. Plus, I do know a thing or two about, y’know, fighting gangs.”

Suddenly, the door to the elevator opened, admitting Sevika, who had a stormy expression on her face. Vi was puzzled until she noticed that Sevika had a headset dangling from one of her claws. Eve too must have seen it, as she recoiled slightly in response to her captain walking in.

“Aw damn it, you were listening in.”

“I am always listening in when my crew is sharing scuttlebutt with Vi,” Sevika thundered, angrily. “Luckily for you, Eve, I was also going to ask for Vi’s help… as well as Caitlyn’s.”

“Caitlyn’s?” Eve snorted. “What, you want a bolt in the back, boss?”

“Caitlyn Kirramman is one of the best snipers the Alliance has ever produced.” Vi was surprised by the firmness of Sevika’s tone. “From what info Mel has provided me with, I also am aware of her capacity to strategise while under immense pressure. Unlike you, I’m not reluctant to acknowledge her expertise.”

Eve flushed. Vi couldn’t tell if it was embarrassment at the dressing down she was getting from her ship’s captain, or at the fact she had been eavesdropped on in the first place.

“C’mon, Sevika, you didn’t have to say it like that.”

“How else would you expect me to say it, Eve?” The Turian’s response was somewhat level in tone. “I don’t care how much you dislike Kirramman for personal reasons, your life is your life. But I do draw a line under any implication that she is not useful for this crew, in more circumstances than even just this one.”

“Why do you care?” Eve wanted to know. “Like, no disrespect meant, Sevika, but why defend her?”

Sevika shrugged, although her eyes remained fixed on Eve’s face.

“Because I need my crew to understand that I’d never put them in danger by agreeing to work with incompetent clients.”

She glanced at Vi, and her face broke into a Turian smirk.

“Well, unless their incompetence only occurs within range of machinery.”

“Hey!” Vi protested but was drowned out by Eve’s laughter.

“Ok boss, I hear you,” she finally responded, with a grin. “I’ll lighten up on the anti-Kirramman ranting. Still think she’s a stuck-up turncoat who chose her military progression over people.”

“Think whatever you like, Eve. Just don’t bring my judgement into question.”

“Well, you’re the captain.” Eve saluted as she spoke. “I’m gonna head back down to the engine room. Maybe some time arguing with the power cables will make me feel better about the whole thing. Catch you, Vi. Feel free to drop in on the poker night tonight if you get your homework done.”

 As the engineer made her way back to the elevator, Vi turned to address Sevika.

“I gotta say, I didn’t expect you would be on the Caitlyn Kirramman Defence Force.”

Sevika snorted in response, leaning against the wall near the couches.

“Yeah well, I don’t appreciate being undermined by anyone, no matter their personal feelings about the people I work with. Plus…” she paused briefly. “Caitlyn has been incredibly insightful in our meetings.”

Vi felt her heart drop. Sevika and Caitlyn had been having meetings? Without her? Sevika obviously noticed the furrowing of her brow. She leaned forward and nudged Vi, almost friendly, with a claw.

“Hey, don’t get all sulky – she’s been picking my brain as much as she has yours.” In response to Vi’s puzzled expression, she offered another shrug. “I also have connections on Omega.”

“I’m not getting sulky,” Vi protested. “I just think we’d be able to cross-check information if we all did it at once.”

“I’d rather get information in isolation so I can compare the similarities and differences.” Caitlyn’s voice came from behind Vi. She hadn’t noticed her team leader’s door open. “That way, I know the information is reliable if it’s validated by multiple sources.”

Vi’s mouth went dry. Caitlyn stood there, hair tied up with a few strands framing her face, wearing a tight black singlet with grey geometric details on the side, tucked into those same blue BDU pants and combat boots that she’d worn before. The singlet revealed the most of Caitlyn’s body that Vi had seen and oh boy, did she absolutely appreciate that garment.

Caitlyn’s build was stunning. Unlike Vi, who knew she had the biceps of a boxer from all her close-combat work and weights, Caitlyn’s arms were covered in wiry, long muscle, obviously from handling a rifle or rucking out to overwatch positions. The curve of her shoulders down to her bust was defined and toned. Vi could tell that that Caitlyn worked out, did what she had to do to keep herself fit and strong, but it was clear Caitlyn also favoured the ability to be nimble and quick, not just able to lift heavy things over her head. Her waist was trim, and there was no double in Vi’s mind that Caitlyn would be similarly toned on her lower half.

Vi forced herself to not react but it was difficult to not let her eyes wander too much. She wanted to slide her hands around that waist, pull Caitlyn’s body into hers.

This woman, I swear to fucking god…

“Makes sense,” Sevika said, in response to Caitlyn’s explanation. “It’s a clever way to cross reference.”

“I learned it from the Alliance,” Caitlyn explained, simply. “Captain Grayson always investigated each lead individually.”

“Seems inefficient to me,” Vi said, forcing herself to keep her eyes on Caitlyn’s face, which broke into a half smile.

“You would say that,” Caitlyn responded, folding her arms across her chest and damn near giving Vi a heart attack. “You’re used to working to a tighter timeline than me. For this mission, it’s important for me to get a proper overview of Omega, which means I must get as many perspectives as possible.”

“Who else have you asked?” Vi wanted to know.

“Scar had some insight into pockets of anti-authority gangs that worked adjacent to smugglers. He said he used to pilot for the Firelights, who helped him get FTL certified. He also mentioned that there was an Asari who goes by ‘Gert’ in engineering who also has connections with a smaller offshoot,” the team leader responded, looking towards the elevator. “Actually, I’m on my way to check that lead out before hitting the firing range to tune up my shooting.”

Vi’s heart sank. Goddamn it, now she would have to make sure to include them on her list. She had hoped that she didn’t have to connect with the Firelights again. They were unusual for an Omega gang, more focussed on protecting the people of Omega who were not involved in the fight for power than on building their own base of authority. Their leader, Ekko, was also not Vi’s biggest fan. They were often on opposing sides, through no fault of their own. Ekko protected the little people while Vi's job was to get the job done, no matter the collateral.

It would explain why Scar’s cockpit was set up with the running rails. That ingenuity came straight from that world of minimal resources, maximum outcome. It also meant she would have to watch Scar carefully, making sure only certain names made it to Caitlyn’s ears.

Caitlyn appeared unaware of Vi’s internal conflicts. She turned her attention to the mercenary, and Vi’s unease was replaced by more fluttering in her stomach.

“How much longer until you’ve finished your list? I’d like to have all the information on the holo board within the next few hours.”

Vi lifted the datapad, with a flex of her bicep. She watched those blue eyes flick onces over to her arm, before returning to her face, a slight blush on Caitlyn's cheeks.

Worth it.

“Working on it now, Cupcake.”

Caitlyn rewarded her with a smile, showing the cute gap between her teeth.

“Appreciated, Vi. Truly. Once I’ve got that, we can start having meetings between all of us.”

Pausing, she took in Vi’s surprised face. The smile turned into a grin.

“What? You thought I was going to hide myself away in my room staring at the holoboard forever? I do need to leverage the expertise of people around us to properly strategize.”

“Expertise?” Sevika snarked. “I don’t think Vi’s ever been considered an expert in anything.”

“Hey!” Vi protested as Caitlyn laughed. “I’ll have you know, my reputation as a mercenary is built on my expertise.”

“No wonder you ended up in C-Sec on the Citadel.”

Vi laughed, despite herself. Sometimes, Sevika's comments could be wickedly funny. 

“Y’know, that wasn’t exactly my fault,” she explained. “I had to make a quick exit and being a stowaway seemed like a good idea at the time.”

“Escape from what?” Caitlyn wanted to know. Vi sighed and ran a hand through her hair. The tale was nowhere near as exciting and impressive as she would want to tell Caitlyn, but she figured being mostly truthful was best for their burgeoning relationship.

“I finished up a gig for a private corporation, only to find out that while I was off doing the job, there was a… change of management.”

“I guess the new managers wanted to tie up all the loose ends?” Sevika interjected. Vi nodded.

“Yup, got it in one.”

Sevika whistled low. Vi knew that the Turian had been in similar sticky situations. Caitlyn, however, looked a little puzzled. Vi smirked up at her.

“When your original client is disposed of in an incredibly hostile takeover, they often like to make sure no one who was a contact or was entitled to payment is at risk of coming back.”

“So, you had a corporation send mercenaries after you?” Caitlyn asked. Vi shook her head.

“Nah, they waited for me to come back to their headquarters then tried to ambush me with their entire security team of mechs.”

Caitlyn’s eyes went wide as Sevika chuckled.

“I’m guessing that didn’t go so well for them.” the Turian commented.

Vi shook her head again, feeling a wicked grin spread across her cheeks. It had been an exhilarating fight, outnumbered though she was.

“Turns out, the new management didn’t even bother to read my profile from the old management,” she explained. “They didn’t even know that I prefer my combat up close and personal. For that I’m forever grateful – it’s probably the only reason I got out of that ambush relatively unhurt. But I did have to stowaway on a trade freighter.”

“Which is where C-Sec found you.” Caitlyn stated.

“Yeah, I didn’t realise we were going to the Citadel,” Vi responded, pushing a lose strand of dark pink hair out of her face. “Thought I’d only jump on until their first refuelling stop. Turns out, they were a direct freight route. I got nabbed literally the moment the freighter started to be unloaded.”

“Yes, C-Sec doesn’t take kindly to unauthorised entry without proper processing,” Caitlyn responded evenly. Vi snorted, leaning against the couch, folding her arms across her chest.

“You can say that again – still got no clue how long I was kept in holding until you busted me out.”

Caitlyn smiled at that comment, a light blush on her cheeks again. Vi couldn’t fight her own smile, tugging at the side of her lips. There was a pause, a tension between them, that Caitlyn chose to break.

“You’re very welcome,” she responded. “Now, I’ll leave you to your notes. Sevika, I’ll see you at chow time.”

As the team leader left Sevika shot Vi a sideways look. Vi felt herself flush.

“What?” she asked the Turian, who gave her another smirk.

“Vi, I’ve known you long enough to know when you’re feeling that pull.”

“Pull? What pull? There’s no pull here.” Vi said too quickly, aware of the defensive tension in her shoulders and hating it.

“Mhm, there’s no pull and I’m not missing an arm.”

“Seriously, there’s no pull,” Vi protested again, settling further into the couch. Caitlyn had made it clear she was not interested in anything beyond collegial chats. It didn’t matter how attractive Vi found her, or how much it seemed like Caitlyn returned that chemistry. In spite of all of the denial, Sevika rolled her eyes and VI wanted to reach up and slap her.

“That’s unlikely, given that we might as well slap a sticker on Kirramman with the words ‘Vi’s Type’ on it,” Sevika retorted with a knowing smile

“You don’t know the first thing about my type, Aesecus.”

“See, there’s the first hint – you always revert to calling me by my clan name when I’m right. And you always mispronounce it.”

Vi felt her expression darken further. She ignored Sevika as the Turian leaned her elbows on the couch back, with a weirdly serious expression.

“All I’m gonna ask is that you be aware of what you’re getting yourself into.”

Well, that was surprising.

“Why do you care?” Vi snapped, knowing she sounded defensive as fuck and not caring.

“I know as well as you do that you have connections on Omega.” The reply was stern. “To what extent, I don’t have the specific details, but something sent you flying from your old stomping ground around a year ago.”

“Jobs go bad all the time, Sevika. You know that better than most.”

“It’s rare for a job to go so badly that a legendary mercenary, in the pocket of one of the most powerful figures in the galaxy, starts to take gigs far off world,” Sevika said, plainly.

“You know I was also avoiding you, right?” Vi said in response, forcing herself to stare at the data pad instead of at the Turian, who was now looking at her with increasing interest.

“Also avoiding? What do you mean ‘also’?”

“What are you warning me against here?” Vi hardened her tone, inwardly cursing herself. “Getting into bed with Caitlyn or working on this mission? Either one is none of your fucking business.”

Sevika stiffened at her tone, and Vi felt the chill of adrenaline begin in her veins. Sevika would space her, if she wasn’t careful.

“I’m not warning you about shit.” The Turian’s tone was typically brusque as she stood up, eyes burning down at Vi. “Just saying, be aware of what you’re getting yourself into. While I know you’re used to being reckless, I don’t think Kirramman does. And it’s not fair for you to take advantage of the benefit of the doubt she’s giving you.”

“What, you gonna warn her?” Vi was pissed. The implication that she didn’t care about Caitlyn, was reckless in her decisions and actions was infuriating. Sevika didn’t know shit about what was going on, why Vi might be cagey about Omega. At least, she hoped Sevika didn’t know shit.

“It’s not my place to out your history, Vi,” Sevika responded, voice even and hard. “But I do hope you’re gonna be as honest as you can be with that data pad there. Kirramman deserves at least that.”

“If you feel this way then why the fuck recommend me for the job?”

Sevika levelled another stern look at Vi and she fought the urge to shrink back into the couch.

“Because, as much as it pains me to admit, you are the best person for a job like this. You got the combat skills for close aggressive offence, which this team sorely lacked, the contacts with every major mover and shaker on the station, the reputation that is so bombproof that Aria wants you to keep living and Mordin Solus’s clinic is willing to give you a discount.”

The captain paused, lifting her non mechanical claw as if to inspect her nails.

“And you’re not an absolute pain in the ass at least twenty five percent of the time, which is better odds that most of your peers.”

“Thanks,” Vi replied, deadpan. Sevika snorted a chuckle.

“All I am saying is that on paper, you’re the best in the business. In person, you’re decent to work with. But I don’t know what changed in the last year or so that made you avoid Omega and the systems around it like the plague. And I’m concerned that you seem so reluctant to talk about it, given previously you could talk shit with a mouthful of marbles underwater.”

She leaned forwards a little, her armour creaking slightly. Vi found herself leaning back, swallowing a suddenly dry throat. Being on the receiving end of a Turian come-to-Jesus talk was not something anyone particularly enjoyed, and Vi was not placated by it coming from this particular Turian.

“While I don’t particularly care who you pissed off, I am worried it’ll come back and kick us all in the ass if we’re not aware of it,” Sevika explained. “So get your shit together before we land, or at least fucking warn Kirramman. She’ll need every advantage she can get.”

Vi found herself nodding, even as her mind immediately repelled the thought. Knowing what she knew, who she knew… she couldn’t let the past and the future touch. She hoped she wouldn’t have to. With some clever notes and putting names deep and deemphasised, she should be able to put enough distance in for the investigation to circumvent key people.

Yeah, she could do that. It wouldn’t be lying. It’d be… efficiency. Unknowing of Vi’s plans, Sevika smirked.

“Good to see you agree. Now, last thing – I need to onboard you as to the situation at our second stop.”

“Oh yeah, Blood Pack, right?”

Sevika nodded again, folding her arms across her chest.

“Got it in one. Garm still has a million credits set aside for the first person to bring him my head.”

“A million credits, hey?” Vi said cheekily, with a smirk and wink. Sevika pointed a claw at her.

“Stop it. Not happening. I can and will space you.”

Vi laughed and Sevika continued:

“As I was saying, a million credits is a large purse that is hard for people to turn down. I got a tip off from my client on Gosperk Station that there were mutterings from some of very green mercenaries about combining their forces to try and take not only my head but my ship.”

Vi whistled.

“So, these people don’t know who and what you are, or how loyal your crew is, I’m guessing.”

Sevika gave a wicked smile, her face plates flanging out. Vi could see the pride that Sevika had in her crew, in the unity of the people around her. It would be touching if it wasn’t someone quite as… rough around the edges as Sevika.

“Given that most of these mercs are more thugs and criminals than professionals, I’m sure these people don’t know shit about us,” Sevika said, smugly. “My client decided to keep it that way.”

She paused, a skittering of mirth across her face before it returned to its normal expression.

“He has a weird sense of humour.”

Vi raised her eyebrow.

“How weird?”

“Weird enough that he’s offered a bonus if we, and I quote, ‘clean the scum off his station’. Turns out, he doesn’t much like amateurs, no matter how ambitious they are.”

Vi made a snorting noise through her nose. Typical eccentric client, it seemed.

“So, this is a combo of saving your carapace and earning your crew a tidy bonus?” she commented.

“Consider it a warmup,” Sevika retorted. “I don’t know how long you’ve been out of the game and locked up in C-Sec, but you’ve never had Caitlyn as team lead on an op.”

Vi scrunched her face up.

“You make it sound like I’m unable to follow orders.”

“No, I just know you can be somewhat… insubordinate when the mood takes you.”

Sevika lifted her artificial arm and mockingly examined the joints, taking her time as Vi realised the gesture’s meaning and flushed. Goddamn it.

“Look, Sevika, I… I chose your life over your limb. That was worth disobeying your orders.”

Sevika sighed and pinched the bridge of her faceplate above her mouth. Vi realised it was the equivalent of a human pinching the bridge of their nose. There was a lull in the conversation as Sevika appeared to struggle with what to say next. Then, she spoke:

“Whatever the intention, it still points to a level of disregard of command,” Sevika explained, lifting her hand away. “That, combined with the dishonourable discharge from the Alliance-”

“How did you…”

“Mel.”

“Goddamn it.”

Sevika laughed at that comment, before returning to the topic at hand, moving to fold her arms across her chest again.

“As I was saying, your history doesn’t exactly point to reliability in combat squads. I figure, this would be a good place for you and Caitlyn to get to see how you operate together.”

“While earning your team a pretty purse?”

Sevika shrugged, with a mean looking smile.

“Why not? It’ll help offset the cost of setting you up with the executive quarters.”

There was a pause as Vi stared. She knew deep down, she’d absolutely do this little side mission – it had been far too long since she cracked some skulls and kicked ass. But the fact she wouldn’t exactly benefit from it did rankle her. Vi didn’t necessarily like mindless violence, as fun as it was. She liked violence with purpose, with reason and credible outcome. Competition, or credits, she didn’t care. This felt far too much like being used for her liking.

Sevika sighed, seeing the tense set of Vi’s shoulders as the mercenary clutched at her data pad.

“Ok, ok, I’ll throw you a bonus. God, you’d think we’re keeping you lean to the bone the way you’re carrying on.”

Vi smiled a little.

“Thanks, Sevika. I don’t need much. Just enough to make it seem less like I’m just a mindless weapon and more of a… valuable expert? You know what I’m saying?”

Sevika’s expression shifted to surprise. Vi realised that the Turian hadn’t expected this of her. It warmed her, thinking that she could still put the terrifyingly implacable captain off kilter. Finally, the Turian spoke again.

“Y’know, I do think I know what you mean. Thanks Vi. I’ll leave you to your notes for Caitlyn.”

As Sevika left the mess via the elevator, Vi settled down again with her data pad. Staring at the list of names, Vi’s thumb hovered over one in particular. She didn’t really know what to do, whether to even include it. Hell, it had been over a year, as Sevika said. Perhaps things had moved on? Perhaps… she’d changed by now?

It was worth the risk. It wouldn’t be a mistake.

It was efficiency, right? Keeping to the big fish in the pond.

And if she was wrong, she could fix it, she was sure of it.

Slowly, Vi deleted the six letters one by one.

Chapter Text

Boom

Pock

Click

Boom

Pock

Click

Caitlyn was deep within herself, butt of her sniper rifle rhythmically pushing into the meat of her shoulder as she pulled the trigger, popped the heatsink and reloaded with an increasingly comfortable flow. She braced herself properly, crouching with her elbow resting on her knee to use her body structure as a stable platform for the gun, just as she had been trained. Her body ached pleasantly, a familiar sensation of balancing relaxation and tension like all good marksmen should. She concentrated on her breathing, on slipping the pulls of her trigger with her heartrate in the correct space.

It had been a while since she’d been able to use her favourite weapon. She’d relied on it for a little while she was adrift between her time in the Alliance Military and C-Sec and would often try to spend some time in the firing range keeping her eye in between shifts on the Citadel. But C-Sec’s platoon of ranged specialists was exclusive, and she had not been invited to apply, with Pallin making it clear such opportunities were to be earned. She hadn’t let the rejection get to her. She knew she was good, if not one of the best around. If C-Sec didn’t give her the chance, it was their loss. But excellence was built on the back of repetition, and Caitlyn did not want to get caught out.

So, after speaking with Gert – and spending a lot of the conversation feeling weirdly offput by some positively Vi-esque lines coming from an Asari who was almost as tall as she was – she had decided to spend as much time as she could reacquainting herself with her pride and joy. Caitlyn had owned this rifle since she was fourteen years old – her mother and father had considered competitive shooting a decent hobby for their daughter to have, especially since she had shown little interest in more acceptable ventures. Originally, the rifle accepted bullets, but Jayce had adapted it with a micro mass-effect particle driver to transform it into a proper military-spec weapon.

Of course, given it was Jayce they were talking about, the gun’s gold and wood aesthetics had been preserved, upgraded even as the barrel was replaced by something capable of withstanding the physics of the heatsink system, and the handle embedded with a cyberactive lock, meaning that only she could pull the trigger so long as she wore the correct ring on her finger beneath her gloves. The sight was also highly upgraded, a custom piece that she had designed and Jayce had made reality. They had completed it the night before her first tour, using a biometric scan of her eyes combined with a homebrew operating system run by a VI to create something that reacted to her focus. It was part of the reasons she had purchased the Kuwashii Visor – it was compatible with the software.

The best part of the weapon was, through Jayce’s upgrades, it had become able to pack down like any other modern arms and fit very well to the mag-lock on the back of her new armour. This had made it able to be used as her main firearm during her time with the Alliance – all she had to do was sign a special form stating that she would not try to claim it as lost resources if she lost it in action.

Caitlyn allowed herself a smile as she kept drilling her shots down the firing range, keeping her eyes on the tight grouping of marks registering in the digital target in front of her. The last few days had felt… peaceful, despite her unease at having exposed herself to Vi. She’d felt herself withdraw, deciding to focus more on the work and less on the people, and it seemed to be working. Caitlyn felt herself begin to shoulder the burden of leadership, a sense of weight across her body that felt like armour. It reinforced her, put steel in her spine, and command in her voice.

Subconsciously, she knew she was shutting herself off not through her sense of duty, but because every time Vi’s steel grey eyes locked onto her, a bolt of warmth and desire cut through her. The moment she saw that strong looking hand run through dark pink hair, she had to fight to stop from making a comment about how attractive the gesture was. The sound of a rough laugh, scarred lips turned up in response to something said at the dining table would ring in her ears and she would push down the intense need to be closer. She wasn’t stupid nor lacking in self-awareness. Caitlyn knew this was an infatuation, an intense one she could not afford to indulge.

When she had told Vi the high level of what had happened on Topside, she hadn’t fully been truthful. She hadn’t spoken about the aftermath, about Matriarch Ambessa’s intervention and advice, of the time spent wandering the galaxy looking for a new purpose. Of the appointments with Alliance psychologists, and the stares of hatred from her peers in the support groups when she disclosed her name and previous posting. There was an emotional toll that Caitlyn felt, one she wished she could share but knew that it would do nothing but compromise the structures she had built to keep herself functional.

To follow her interest in Vi, to allow herself to open further, to give the full lay of the land, of the sense of betrayal and lack of trust in command would demolish her ability to stand tall. No, she had to be strong and pull back from the connection. It was better to be polite, make the occasional comment and bury herself in her work. Mel knew enough, no one else needed to know more.

The refocussing had proved dividends. She had been working on her omnitool a few days ago, huddled over the bench in the laboratory. Jayce had been experimenting with something called the ‘WireTrap’ protocol – something that bound enemies armour up with yellow energy like a spider. He was curious if her HexTech was compatible. It turned out, it absolutely was, but it needed a bit of tinkering to get it. Between the two of them, they reworked the back end protocols and got the activation working. Adding in the WireTrap to her arsenal would allow her to hold opponents still, meaning she could take her time with taking them out.

As well as that, her holo-board was mostly complete, links made between sources, profiles built of the team, people of interest on Omega, and maps of the powerful group’s activities and resources just waiting for Vi’s input. Caitlyn had procrastinated asked Vi for her contribution, but managed to get the request out politely after dinner a few day cycles ago. She had then immediately shut herself in her room to lay on her bed in her pyjamas, watching the universe go by through the observation port, letting herself melt into the spaces between her thoughts, memories and emotions.

Finally, she had fit her new loadout harness with the armour and equipment from the previous pick-up and had jailbroken her visor to talk to the Armax OS within her suit. Her equipment was almost ready. She had to make sure she was similarly prepared. Hence, the trip to the training centre – she needed to make sure she could still deliver when the chips were down and there were obstacles that required more force and less diplomacy. So far, it was going well. She had already done a session of weights, plyometrics and stretching to test her physique before she did her sharpshooting with her sidearm and her rifle.

The sound of the training centre door opening shook her from the flow state she was in. Turning her head, she compacted her rifle as Sevika approached her.

“Nice shooting,” the Turian said in greeting. Caitlyn shrugged a shoulder, standing up to walk towards the weapon locker, waving a hand over the sensor.

“You’d hope so,” she replied, as casually as she could. “I have been shooting for about half of my life.”

“You said you were rusty.” Sharp eyes glanced at the digital target, which still showed the grouping of her practicing. Sevika jerked her head towards it. “Ain’t nothing rusty about that.”

Slightly embarrassed, Caitlyn waved her hand at the firing range, omnitool lighting up. There was a sound as the target reset, as clean as it was when she began.

“It’s harder when they’re moving,” Caitlyn said, keeping her voice casual. “I was just making sure my sights were in alignment.”

“Mmm.” Sevika didn’t sound convinced. Caitlyn flushed further, turning her back to the captain as she put her rifle away. The weapon’s locker contained all her equipment but could be moved to the hanger with the rest of her squads on request by the deckhands. Caitlyn appreciated it. It was easier to test weapons and armour in the training centre, but harder to get ready for deployment. She flicked the tab to send the signal to the hanger for the crate’s transport, before taking a moment to settle herself.

“What can I do for you?” She offered a smile as she turned back to Sevika. The Turian paused, absentmindedly running a claw over one of the rods in her prosthetic arm, and Caitlyn was surprised at the hesitation. “Sevika?”

“I comment on how good you are at popping shots off, and you ask me what you can do for me. Dunno whether to be intimidated or impressed.”

Caitlyn raised an eyebrow, taken aback, before feeling her face turn a shade more red. The Turian was right, it was a jarring change of topic. Sevika laughed.

“All I’m saying is, I’m glad we’re on the same side. I’ve got a favour to ask you.”

Blinking in surprise, Caitlyn leaned against her locker, folding her arms. There was a phantom of an ache in her back and shoulders from both the fitness testing and the shooting, but aside from that, she felt fit and ready.

“A favour? Consider me intrigued.”

“The Blood Pack put a bounty on my head of a million credits.” Sevika paused, before smirking. “And before you make any further comment, I can and will space you.”

“I’m not one to chase bounties,” Caitlyn interjected. “Nor am I one to betray people on my team.”

“Thought as much. Was just checking,” Sevika replied. “Anyway, turns out there’s a bunch of low-level criminals and thugs at our next stop who seem to believe that taking me down would be easy money.”

Her facial flanges widened further. Caitlyn was finding herself more able to read the expressions of the captain the more they had meetings, but she still found the savagery of the Turian Grin a little intimidating.

“I was wondering if you help me convince them that would be a bad move.”

“What kind of conviction are you suggesting?” Caitlyn’s brow furrowed as she spoke.

“The violent kind.” The reply was quick. “My client has offered a bonus for clearing them off his station. Supposedly, this is the last in a long line of straws.”

Caitlyn felt her frown deepen. This was something she’d never encountered before, using her combat ability for something other than serving, protecting and fighting for humanity. She needed more insight into what exactly she was being asked to do.

“How reliable is this information?” She wanted to know. “I would hate to be used as a tool by some weapon’s dealer for oppressing people who don’t deserve it.”

Sevika blinked at her, head tilting to the side. The grin faded as her faceplates shifted to arrange in an expression that Caitlyn had not seen before – something akin to confusion. Then, Sevika laughed softly.

“Oh yeah, you’re not a merc. You don’t shoot first and ask questions later.”

She fell silent as the door to the training centre opened again, admitting a human and salarian both wearing cargo exoskeletons in a bright orange. They nodded to Sevika and approached Caitlyn, pausing to look at her expectantly. Caitlyn moved from the locker she was leaning on. Quickly, they clicked a few buttons on the side of the crate, causing handles to lock onto parts of their suits. With another nod, they walked the crate out, letting the door close behind them. Caitlyn took a moment, before responding to Sevika:

“I like to know if I’m taking a life that it’s one that’s worth snuffing out. Not one that’s going to increase someone’s bottom line.”

Sevika scoffed and walked over to the weights bench. Sitting down, she rested her elbows on her knees, leaning forwards.

“Give me some credit here, Kirramman,” she almost growled. “I wouldn’t ask you to do something that I didn’t think you would do.”

Caitlyn twisted her lips but stepped towards where the Turian was sitting, arms still folded. It was a fair point. In their meetings, Sevika had revealed herself to be incredibly shrewd in her dealings. From what Caitlyn had noted, the Turian prefaced her crew above anything else. She would remember not just skills but personalities, and often her crew was placed in roles that highlighted both technical ability and personal aptitude. Perhaps while she was busy getting a measure of the Captain, the Captain was also taking note of her own morals, ethics and talents. Despite this, she found herself smiling. Seems like they shared the same need to be across all aspects of their colleagues. Unaware of Caitlyn’s thoughts, Sevika continued:

“Most of them are rejects from gangs, criminals from pirate squads that were dissolved, those types. Gospeck Station is on the edge of the Terminus Systems. The client recently took over the operation of the station and changed it from a lawless hideout to a rather successful cargo depot.”

The turian paused, her thunderous expression shifting back to darkly amused.

“Although, he does drive a hard bargain… Vern has been accused of underpaying his transport captains if they don’t complete a job to his exact liking.”

“That doesn’t sound like your typical client?” Caitlyn commented, dryly. Sevika chuckled at her tone.

“He wouldn’t pull such a thing with me. He learned quickly not to get on my bad side.”

She again started to toy with one of the screws of her prosthetic hand.

“To be honest with you? This a win-win. I get to earn a bonus, keep one of my patrons happy…”

“And for me?” Caitlyn wanted to know.

“You get a chance to rid the universe of some scummy murderers while checking that all your equipment is functional and your team listens,” Sevika offered.

There was a pause, a space in the conversation which allowed Caitlyn to consider the offer. Would Sevika lie to her about the type of people she would be engaging with? No, it wouldn’t make sense for the Turian to do such a thing, especially with the amount Mel was paying her to provide a stable base of operations. Plus, from what Caitlyn had uncovered in her own research, Sevika’s bounty was indeed large, but no one was actively chasing it due to her crew’s reputation for loyalty, the strength of her frigate, and her ability with a heavy pistol. While the Turian had to retire from active mercenary work, her reputation and ability as a cargo captain and runner was indeed fierce, and there were plenty out there willing to counteroffer any active attempt to kill her with a bounty on the people chasing her. Therefore, this attempt was either stupid, desperate or both.

Caitlyn combined this information with what she knew about Gospeck station. Sevika, of course, hadn’t realised that Caitlyn had investigated every possible thing she could, had sifted through the dossiers and itineraries of the Sinestrus to see where possible weaknesses that opposition could exploit were. Gospeck had been high on her list. Vern Mogarvin, the new owner, was a slippery character originally from Illium. Immediately, she had dug into him, only to find a Turian ex-Security Chief of a private corporation who had decided the money was better when he ran his own enterprises. Vern was far from completely trustworthy, having learned his management trade at the elbow of the corrupt CEOs of Illium. But as Caitlyn had explored further, she noted his dealings with people of good repute – like Sevika – were kept clean and above board. It seemed like Vern would only bully those who he thought deserved it. It would explain the desire to remove a less reputable class of mercenary from his station, to encourage them to be replaced by more reliable characters he could trust. Sevika, clearly watching Caitlyn mulling it over, decided to try and put a claw on the scales.

“Vi’s already agreed to help.”

Unthinking, Caitlyn felt herself shoot the Turian a glare. Sevika looked back at her, with an expression that read like uh-oh.

“Oh really?” Caitlyn’s voice felt acidic. “You recruited a member of my team? Before talking to me?”

There was another pause as Sevika blinked a few times, before her shoulders sagged and she facepalmed.

“Aw fuck,” Sevika muttered. “No, it’s not like that.”

“Sevika, I thought we had an understanding about how we treated each other’s responsibilities?” Caitlyn stood tall, looking down at the Turian. 

“Yeah, we did,” Sevika groaned, resting her chin on her fist. “Look, I was keeping an eye on Eve and Vi’s conversation, as I always do when one of my crew is gossiping with a client and the engineer couldn’t keep her big mouth shut. She told Vi something about needing shields just in case, and I had to intervene.”

She sighed.

“I know I should have come to you first, and trust me, I was going to. But Eve needed to be reminded to keep her mouth shut and to not undermine your abilities.”

Wait, what?

The freeze over Caitlyn thawed a bit.

“Sevika, while I appreciate it, I don’t need you to defend me,” she said, levelly.

“You’re not stupid.” The response was immediate. “You know it wasn’t just about defending you.”

Sevika stood, looming a little over Caitlyn. It hadn’t really occurred to Caitlyn until now just how tall the Turian was. Caitlyn was close to six feet tall, and yet, she still had to look up.

“You are on my ship. If I let any old idiot work with me, I’d be putting not just my reputation at risk, but the lives of the people who trust me.” Sevika muttered, eyes glowing with conviction. “You must be good at what you say you are good at. Eve can dislike you as much as she fucking likes. But she doesn’t get to second guess my judgement. And my judgement tells me that you know your shit.”

There was a pause.

“Even if you like to pretend you don’t.”

Caitlyn felt the tip of her nose begin to tingle again. Her hands shook. It was one thing hearing this from Mel, the Asari who had seen her in action. Sevika didn’t know her capabilities in the field. She hadn’t seen Caitlyn do anything more than target practice and strategize. Sevika’s savage smirk softened to a more rueful smile.

“Don’t think for a second you’re the only person on this ship who knows the importance of researching their teammates… Or that I hadn’t investigated you the minute Mel suggested you for this mission.”

That one hit Caitlyn like a concussive shot. While she had been so busy trying to keep people out, building up a polite freeze so that Vi would only see what she wanted the mercenary to see, Sevika had known from the beginning everything that was out there. Yet, the captain did not coddle her, nor restrict her access, or do anything but support her. No wonder it was so easy to get the holo-board set up. Sevika thought she had a measure of Caitlyn’s abilities. Probably had a whole dossier on her the same as she had on the Turian.

God, what else did she know about?

Shaking off the thought, Caitlyn sighed. Her mission to keep herself separate was dissolving before her eyes. Perhaps, she could find another place to hide herself?

“So, you took the opportunity to dress down Eve and talk to Vi about this… side objective?” she asked. “I guess I can’t fault your efficiency. What’s in it for Vi?”

“A monetary bonus,” Sevika said simply. In response to Caitlyn’s expression, she added, “Vi refused to do the job for free. Like you, she doesn’t like taking lives without reason.”

“And her reason is money?” Caitlyn commented, dryly. Sevika sighed and moved towards the door, motioning Caitlyn to follow. Despite her discomfort, she stepped forwards, making her way towards the exit with the Captain.

“Vi is a mercenary. The money is reassurance she’s not a common murderer,” the Turian explained as they walked. “It’s much the same as you refusing to take a life unless it’s deserved. We all have our ways of making what we do right with ourselves.”

That stopped Caitlyn in her tracks. She hadn’t considered it that way. Sevika turned and shot her another look, this one inscrutable.

“Investigating someone’s motivation to do the things they do makes things complicated. In my world, I like to keep things simple. Are you in?”

“I am still upset about your disrespect of our agreement about managing Vi,” Caitlyn found herself saying.

“Noted. Will make sure I send her to you with a permission slip or something next time,” Sevika retorted, sarcastically. Caitlyn felt her fists tighten.

“I mean it, Sevika. You would not tolerate me doing the same with any of your crew.”

Sevika sighed.

“Look, it wasn’t an intentional disregard of the “chains of command”.” Sevika lifted her claws to make quotation marks. “We aren’t the Alliance or C-Sec. Sometimes, this shit will happen. I acknowledge that you’re the boss of your team and I’m the boss of mine, but we are all on the same goddamn ship. You’ve read up on me. Trust me when I say that I meant nothing by it.”

The Turian paused again, before fixing her with a hard expression as she opened the door to the training centre with a wave of her omnitool-illuminated prosthetic.

“You really should do more than lip service towards cooperation. This ain’t a military operation. Here, everyone has a voice. Yours and mine just happened to be louder.”

Caitlyn felt her frustration simmer. Sevika might not have meant anything by it, but there was an aching resonance between this oversight and Mel’s treatment of her when the Asari had first been introduced to Vi. The fact it all pivoted around the incredibly attractive mercenary who she had a crush on made the whole thing worse. There was a slow dawning realisation that keeping herself separate from the people she was working with on this ship was not the most efficient way of running things. Like Sevika, she needed them to trust she had their best interests at heart, that she had no ulterior motives. She needed to not demand their obedience but allow them to trust her judgement. Mel was a given – she’d hired Caitlyn for this very reason, and Jayce would be easy as they both knew the measure of one another. Through Jayce, she could probably get Heim and Viktor onboard. But she would have to have more closeness with Vi, especially as they would be spending the most time together. Vi would have to become her second eyes, the extra hands. The one to give perspective on the information and people they would both encounter.

Why was it that the person she wanted the most was also the one she needed? It didn’t seem fair.

The two of them walked to the elevator, which opened at Sevika’s touch. As the doors closed behind them, Sevika looked at Caitlyn, shrewdly.

“So?”

Caitlyn found herself sighing deeply.

“Alright,” she said, reluctantly. “You do have a valid point about testing the team dynamic in a lower stakes environment.”

“Thank you.” The reply seemed genuine. “It’ll make things much easier having you take the lead on managing that threat.”

“Take the lead?” Caitlyn asked. “But…”

“You’re the ground team leader,” Sevika responded, amused. “While I am happy to act as bait, it would probably be for the best if you ran the operation overall.”

There was another sigh and Caitlyn leaned on the wall of the elevator. Damn it, the Turian was right. Again. Sevika reached over to the elevator control panel and pressed the CIC button, turning to look inquisitively at Caitlyn, who shook her head.

“Could you press the button for the mess quarters? While I was intending on going to do more work in the laboratory with Jayce, I think I need to figure out our best approach for this new problem you’ve given me.”

With a chuckle, Sevika obliged the human. They fell into a silence that was somewhere between comfortable and apprehensive. Caitlyn let herself reflect on the shift in approach she now realised she needed to take. Everyone did have a voice on this ship, and she needed to adjust her expectations. Being distant didn’t seem to do anything for her on a ship with Mel, and now Sevika. She had also probably underestimated Jayce, who could be a notorious gossip when the urge took him. With his developing connection with Viktor, it was entirely likely the urge had been unrepentant.

But what could she do to protect herself, to protect those mechanisms that she used to shield herself from her past? A vision of Vi swam into her mind’s eye. Instead of pushing it away as she had been doing so, she allowed herself to focus. The woman was hot, there was no doubting it. Caitlyn had seen her post work out and almost had a damn heart attack. But she was also kind – her comments, while sometimes inappropriate, never overstepped the tenuous boundaries that Caitlyn had insisted upon. She suspected that the mercenary was frustrated by the distance she had put in between them after she’d spoken about Topside, but to Vi’s credit, she didn’t force the issue. That was something. In fact, that was everything. Vi let Caitlyn be in control of their relationship, professional and personal. She truly let Caitlyn lead, had faith in Caitlyn’s judgement of what was comfortable and what was not. Caitlyn’s earlier surmise of Vi’s character appeared to be true. She did have a good heart.

The elevator slowed and the doors opened to the mess quarters. Caitlyn nodded at Sevika and stepped out. It appeared the Turian considered the matter of Gospeck Station’s merc band truly handled. She said nothing as the doors closed behind Caitlyn. Vi was still in the den but she appeared to be napping, one muscled arm thrown over her face, the other on her chest, a leg dangling over the back of the couch. Caitlyn felt her thoughtful expression soften as she took the woman in. She was wearing a tight grey muscle shirt, and a pair of dark brown cargo joggers, her reinforced boots on her feet. Her chest rose and fell lightly with her breath. A datapad rested on her stomach, with a list of names visible.

Caitlyn reached for it slowly. She didn’t want to wake the mercenary, understanding that sleep was something that people in their respective fields sometimes struggled with, but she would like the information to be able to begin adding it to the holoboard.  As her fingers brushed the plastic of the datapad, she suddenly felt Vi’s hand move and grasp her wrist hard. On instinct, Caitlyn went to break the grip, only for Vi’s other hand to grab her shoulder and pull. The world tilted as Caitlyn’s training took over, a kaleidoscope of walls, chairs and lights…

As the world stopped moving, and she came to her senses, she realised she was now straddling Vi with her forearm pushed against the mercenary’s throat on the floor, her lips bared in a snarl. Caitlyn was pressing herself down hard on the mercenary’s stomach, free hand holding Vi’s wrists above her head, chest to chest. Adrenaline coursed through her, but she didn’t dare move, didn’t let up. Her brain was torn between her combat training, the tension of memories that she constantly grappled with, a burning sense of desire deep in her core where it was pressed to Vi’s abdomen, and raging embarrassment.

“Ooft.” Vi’s husky voice was strained. “Ease up, Cupcake. Let a girl breathe.”

Shaking, Caitlyn swallowed, letting her face relax and eased her forearm off Vi’s windpipe. She loosened her grip on the wrists and sat up, desperate to put some space between her and Vi’s chests.

“I am so sorry, Vi, I didn’t…” she went to move, to stand up and give the mercenary a chance to get off the floor only for Vi’s hands to grab her hips and hold her still. Caitlyn’s eyes went wide as she felt the tips of her ears burn. Her heartrate, already racing from the adrenaline, kicked up a gear as arousal flooded her system.

“Hey, shh, you’re alright,” the mercenary said slowly. “I didn’t realise it was you, else I wouldn’t’ve grabbed you so hard. You startled me.”

“I was trying not to wake you,” Caitlyn mumbled, looking anywhere but Vi’s face.

“Kinda looks like you failed at that, Cupcake,” Vi responded, her tone teasing.

There was a pause, a long, drawn-out moment. Caitlyn kept her eyes off Vi’s face, looking at the elevator, the chair, the mess, the roof, anything.  She could free herself. She knew exactly what she needed to do, how to get herself back to her feet and away from the threat. But for some reason, she was frozen, attention split between not looking at Vi and feeling all of her, the fingers on her hips, the bumps of abs between her legs, the slope of her body on her inner thighs. Caitlyn was eternally thankful for the thick reinforced fabric of her BDUs. At the least she couldn’t feel the warmth…

That would have ended her right then and there. All self-control would be broken. Vi, to her credit, said nothing for a moment. Unfortunately, it didn't last.

“You might be on top of me,” Vi downright purred. “But from where I am, it looks like I’m the winner.”

Unthinking, Caitlyn looked down at her in annoyance, to meet grey eyes with incredible blown-out pupils. Caitlyn felt her throat go dry. Vi’s face was flushed, a smirk pulling at her lips. She titled her jaw up challengingly, and Caitlyn almost fucking perished.

“Can’t say I’m upset having you all over me. Just next time, I’d prefer we talk about safe words before you choke me.”

In response, Caitlyn slapped Vi’s shoulder, ignoring the increasing sensation between her legs. Vi laughed in response, still holding onto Caitlyn’s hips. The muscles in Vi’s stomach trembled with the sound, sending electric shocks right to Caitlyn’s core. She pushed down the growing desire, the need to lean down and tangle her hands in Vi’s hair, to bite those lips, to kiss the absolute nerve out of her.

“Very funny, Vi.” It wasn’t funny. It was distracting, horrifyingly humiliating and incredibly arousing. But Caitlyn needed to regain her balance, needed the control back. “Now let me go.”

“So long as you promise to warn me before you throw me around next time.” The reply was cheeky, but Caitlyn felt Vi’s hands loosen. With a small bit of reluctance, she lifted herself off the mercenary, before offering her a hand.

“Don’t grab me suddenly and I won’t have to.”

Vi took the hand and allowed Caitlyn to help her to her feet.

“Honestly, I would have done that to anyone,” Vi shrugged as she spoke. “I’m used to sleeping rough, so I tend to be a pretty light sleeper.”

Caitlyn felt herself flush for an entirely different reason. She should have just woken her up. Vi threw a wink at Caitlyn.

“Don’t worry, I got no regrets for how that all shook out. We should do it again sometime.”

If Caitlyn was blushing before, her face felt luminous right now. Vi grabbed the datapad off the floor and offered it to Caitlyn.

“Here’s that information you wanted,” Vi smirked. “I’ll consider myself truly thanked.”

That was it. It was over. Caitlyn was going to have to throw herself out of the airlock. Vi laughed again.

“Hey, Cait, it’s ok, it was kinda my bad too. Memo to self: don’t engage in a grappling match with Caitlyn Kirramman, especially when you have something she wants.”

Caitlyn felt herself burn.

“I’m still sorry,” she muttered. “You didn’t need that. I should have more self-control.”

“As I said, no regrets.”

This time the tone was sincere. Caitlyn met Vi’s eyes and immediately, the tension returned. Vi’s expression was open, trusting, a slight smile pulling at the corners of her mouth, hands shoved into her pockets. Caitlyn felt her eyes trace Vi’s jaw and lips. She was desperate to kiss her. To taste the ink on her neck, to bury her nose in the crook of her shoulder, to run teeth down her skin. Her eyes returned to Vi’s, and she saw the same hunger, the same dark desire reflected at her.

This was a bad idea. A horrible idea. A no-good, terrible, awful idea. Why can’t I look away?

Vi suddenly cleared her throat, breaking the tension.

“Anyway, there’s the info you wanted, right?” Was that a stammer Caitlyn heard? “Once you put it on the conspiracy board, we should go through it with Sevika and Mel.”

“Yes, of course. I’ll get right on that,” Caitlyn replied, keeping her voice level and trying not to blush at the slight tremble in her tone.

“Cool,” Vi said, almost a hair too quickly. “I’m gonna go clean up before chow time. Catchya.”

As Vi walked away, Caitlyn let her eyes trace her strong back and shoulders. Caitlyn’s treacherous mind took over. As much as she tried to push the fantasy away, it was too late. That husky voice, those blown out pupils and the body beneath here were being locked into place in her memory.

Well, she knew what would be haunting her the next time she was staring into the abyss of the universe.

Chapter Text

Gasping, Vi flopped back onto the bed, white stars fading from her sight as the tremors of her orgasm faded. Vi’d not cum that hard in a long time, and she was probably overdue, but that didn’t account for just how rapid and powerful the sensation had been. It had been like sprinting, chasing pleasure at the speed of light. The term ‘going to town’ could absolute be applied to what she’d done to herself just now and shit, it had been so worth it.

Finally, she felt clearheaded, back on top, in control mentally. All she had to do was work through the aftercare. As Vi relaxed and tried to steady her heartrate, a twinge of guilt replaced the post-orgasmic bliss. In frustration, she pushed her hair off her forehead, blowing out a trembling breath.

Fuck. 

She hadn’t meant to do it, honestly. First, she had tried the push ups, sit ups and squats until her body burned. Then came the cold shower, with the most soothing ambient electronic music she knew. She had shivered underneath the unrelenting showerhead, desperately trying to force the warmth from her body, to replace the desire with the cold reality of the situation. She even tried to meditate under the spray, counting her breaths as the freezing water pounded on the muscles of her back.

None of it worked. Her mind was fixated on the feeling of her hands on Caitlyn’s hips, of the weight of her body pushing down on Vi, the feeling of strength and softness perfectly balanced. God, it had taken all her strength not to slide her hands around to Caitlyn’s ass, then up her back to grab that fuckin’ ponytail and pull it to expose that soft looking, long neck. To try to roll them over, to push her weight down, so that Caitlyn knew how fucking bad, how raw, how needy Vi felt. It was like a movie or a choose-your-own-adventure book playing over and over in her head. Unrepentant erotic imaginings of exactly what she could have done to the taller willowy woman who had so easily manhandled her to the floor.

When Vi had stepped from the shower, she could still feel the slick wetness between her thighs, in spite of the freezing attempt to calm her rampaging gay tits. She was so pent up, too tightly wound to concentrate. So, she did what any good lesbian would do and took matters into her own hands. Perhaps it was indulgent, but Vi rarely made apologies for such behaviours. Problem was, she was pretty sure Caitlyn would be able to see the barely sated desire on her face. And given chow-time was only a few minutes away, Vi was probably gonna have to think of some way to distract her from looking too closely…

Another intensely erotic imagining flooded Vi’s mind, this time of Caitlyn bent over the couch she had been sleeping on, legs spread, ass up and ready.

Goddamn it, not like that.

Vi groaned and sat up, swinging her legs off the bed. Naked, she padded to the bathroom to wash her hands and clean up any remnants from between her thighs. Deciding that it was easier to just throw herself into the shower again, Vi set the temperate to ‘not ass-chillingly-freezing-the-tits-off” and stepped under the spray with a sigh. As the warm water came down, Vi rested her head on the wall in front of her.

Well, that confirmed it. The contract she was on meant that she and Caitlyn were going to be spending a lot of time probably up-close and personal. Now she knew that she was physically into the blue-haired sexbomb, she was fucked and not in the way she really needed to be. All she could do now was try not to blow it by fucking up the mission. Another thought crept into her mind. Did Caitlyn feel the same? Vi reflected on their physical predicament from earlier. She’d been focussed on the fact she had a ten out of ten babe holding her the fuck down, so she hadn’t been paying much attention to reading Caitlyn’s mind. However, the tension between them afterwards was ringing some bells.

Caitlyn had seemed… ruffled. Not in the way that Vi had unbalanced her before, with flirty banter. More driven. Focussed. Drawn. Her eyes had burned. Had Vi upset her? She couldn’t tell. The woman was somewhat implacable. It was hard to get a read, which Vi knew was a defence mechanism. But there was something going on in the tension. Vi couldn’t put her finger on it, in it or even around it.

With a frustrated sigh, Vi stepped out of the shower, dried off, did her hair, and went to throw on some clothes for chow-time. It wasn’t worth losing any sleep over. She wanted to fuck Caitlyn, sure. But she wanted to not fuck up the mission more. Most of all, she wanted to make sure that certain people didn’t fuck up anything to do with the mission, Caitlyn or her own life. Maybe she could just manage the attraction by exercising hard, eating well and masturbating furiously any time the urge to pin Caitlyn down and taste her became too overwhelming. There were bigger things at stake here than being with the baddie ex-cop. Blood mattered, after all.

Smirking to herself, Vi pulled on underwear and sports bra, then a fresh grey undershirt, her new sleeveless hoodie and her reinforced pants. The lights flickered once. Perhaps Eve was still having trouble with the power cables? Either way, it wasn’t Vi’s problem. Sliding her feet into her sneakers, she took one last deep breath, shot a hot look at the unmade bed she’d been writhing in only a few moments ago, and then stepped out into the mess for chow-time.

It was deserted but for Viktor, who was reading something on a datapad. Vi raised an eyebrow.

“Hey, Vik, where’s everyone?”

Viktor’s head lifted up and turned towards Vi.

“Vik?” he questioned. Vi smirked.

“I’m a nicknamer, sue me.”

“Mhm, I do not think I have the litigious skill to bring you to heel,” Viktor snarked back, although Vi could tell from his tone that he wasn’t too offended. “I suppose I can tolerate ‘Vik’ if it pleases you.”

“Good to hear,” Vi shot back, enjoying the volleying banter. “Now we’ve got that established, where’s everyone?”

Almost as if she had summoned them, the elevator door opened to Jayce and Heim. They were deep in heated discussion as they approached the mess area.

“I warned you,” the Krogan rumbled. “You cannot use that type of particle generation field without knowing exactly what energy is being contained.”

“It was such a useful experiment, though,” Jayce said, with a shrug. “And now we know that we can’t use those kinds of forces aboard the Sinestrus. Totally worth it.”

“Was it? You’re the one who will have to explain to Sevika why there was a power surge big enough to blow out the fire containment system in the Laboratory.”

Jayce waved a hand, a charming smile on his face.

“Hey, it’ll be ok. She can bill me, and we can get it fixed on Gospeck… Sevika likes me. We’ve got nothing to worry about.”

As if she had been summoned, the elevator door opened again and Sevika entered, face thunderous. One claw was hovering over her sidearm, the other clenched in a mechanical fist. Vi fought to keep a straight face.

Oh boy, here we go.

“What. Did. You. Do?” Sevika accused, every word bitten off with increasing anger. Jayce paled. It seemed like Sevika didn’t like him quite as much as he was hoping.

“We uh… we experimented?” he explained, weakly.

Sevika growled again, digits twitching over the heavy pistol at her hip. Vi pulled up a chair next to Viktor, fighting back a smile. It was funny when it wasn’t her Sevika was yelling at. She wanted to enjoy the festivities.

“What. Exactly. Did you do?” If her tone was murderous before, this time it was downright genocidal.

“Jayce thought it would be a good idea to experiment with a particle generation field as a method of containing whatever is in the Prothean Device,” Heim explained, ignording Jayce's pleading look. “As you have gathered, it did not go so well.”

“Didn’t go so well? You don’t fucking say,” Sevika hissed. “I just got a call from engineering telling me a whole damn energy port exploded. Do you have any clue how difficult it is to replace an energy port on a frigate of this class?”

There was a pause. Heim and Jayce seemed to glance at one another. Vi bit the inside of her cheek to stop from laughing, commenting, interjecting or doing anything that would distract the Turian from rending the two engineering “geniuses” limb from limb. Deep down, Vi knew it was unsportsmanlike to let them face the wrath of a pissed off Sevika alone, but she wasn’t about to be the one to step in between the Turian and the target of her ire.

“Let me tell you idiots something.” Sevika stepped forwards. “It’s not fucking easy to do.”

“I can pay for it,” Jayce said quickly. “Maybe even get an upgrade for you?”

“Oh you will be paying for it, Talis.” The threat was not even subtextual. “I just need to decide if it’s in credits, sweat, blood or all three.” 

Caitlyn’s door opened and Vi’s heart skipped a beat. The woman had clearly gotten changed out of the singlet and BDUs she had on before, back into what appeared to be the leisurewear of soft black cargos, purple hoodie and black shirt. She’d even forgone the boots and put on sneakers. But it didn’t matter.

Caitlyn Kirramman could be wearing a full biohazard containment suit and Vi would find her irresistible.

“Can anyone explain to me why I suddenly lost all power to my holo-board?” Caitlyn asked, raising an eyebrow at Jayce and Heim. “Or do I just assume that Jayce broke something?”

“Hey!” Jayce protested.

“Shut up,” Sevika snarled at him. Immediately, Jayce pressed his lips together, taking the wisest choice Vi could think of. The Turian turned to Caitlyn.

“Congratulations, you’re a great detective. Yes, your boy broke something.”

Vi felt a stab of jealousy. Jayce wasn’t Caitlyn’s anything. He was an annoyance who sometimes made cool things for Vi to punch. Caitlyn, however, didn’t seem to feel the need to correct Sevika. Instead, she folded her arms and stared coolly at Jayce.

“Jayce, was this one of those times where you did something you knew you shouldn’t or thought you did something that would be useful if it worked?”

“A bit of both,” Jayce confessed. He paused, before looking back at Sevika. “I’m sorry, Sevika, I truly am. I genuinely didn’t know you weren’t able to offset the power draw.”

“I kept telling you that we had problems with the power drive cables,” she snapped. “Every time you came to me asking for more power draw and I said ‘no’, did you think there might be a fucking reason?!”

Jayce had the decency to look a little ashamed of himself. He looked around, only to see that Heim had folded his arms and was also looking for an explanation as to what the hell possessed his colleague to do something so ass-backwards.

“Honestly?” Jayce finally spoke. “I thought that you were keeping power back for your own purposes. Y’know, you can be a little conservative in your resourcing…”

“Conservative?” Sevika didn’t just sound offended. She sounded like she was about to throw Jayce into a black hole. “Conservative? Right, that’s it. I’m going to tear your fuckin’ arms off and beat you to death with them.”

Sevika moved towards Jayce, who put his hands up, backing away. Vi found herself wondering if Sevika would actually make good on her threat. It wouldn’t be the first time. But Caitlyn was right there, and Jayce was someone she was fond of. Vi didn’t want to intervene but if she had to, she would.

“Sevika.” Jayce was still begging to keep his limbs. “Listen I can-”

“Sevika!” Mel’s voice rang out. Vi sighed to herself. Playtime was over. It looked like the Asari was coming in to save the day. The Turian in question whirled, pointing accusingly at Jayce.

“Do you know what this shit-for-brains arrogant little bastard just did?”

“Does it involve blowing up part of the power service energy port structure?” Mel responded. “Because that would explain why my lights flickered.”

“You got off easy,” Caitlyn said. “I lost my holo-board entirely.”

“Yeah, and we just lost any resources for recharging our shields,” Sevika snarked. “So, I’d like to think we might have bigger problems than holo-boards, flickering lights and fire containment systems.”

Viktor stood suddenly.

“I need to check the med bay.” His tone was serious. “If any of the equipment has been impacted by the power surge…”

“Sit your ass down, the med bay is on its own power control port,” Sevika interjected, rudely. Viktor took her ire in stride, nodded once and sat back down, returning to his reading. Vi realised that while it appeared he had not been paying any attention to the whole altercation, in fact he hadn’t missed a trick.

What had this Quarian lived through to be so unflappable?

Meanwhile, Sevika continued her ranting:

“Without shield recharge capability, we are absolutely sitting ducks if someone wanted to engage us in a dog fight.”

“Doesn’t Gospeck Station have a repair facility?” Caitlyn asked. Sevika growled.

“Yes, and watch as Vern charges us through the goddamn teeth to use it.”

“I’ll pay the bill,” Jayce said, quickly. “I’ll even pay for an upgrade so that the power core cable issue is resolved. Just please don’t kill me.”

“I will assist in overseeing the repairs,” Heim offered. “I doubt anyone will do a poor job under my watch.”

Sevika breathed heavily. Vi could see she was still enraged. Mel stepped forwards and, to Vi’s surprise, placed a hand gently on Sevika’s non prosthetic arm. Sevika turned her head, mouth open and ready to snap something that Vi was probably sure involved a lot of curse words, only for Mel to get in first.

“It was a mistake,” she said softly, looking up to meet the Turian’s furious gaze evenly. “I do not think it is worth losing Jayce Talis and his company’s resources over something that can not only be fixed but improved.”

There was a pause. Vi found herself locking eyes with Caitlyn. The team leader’s expression was unreadable, but there was a slight hint of a smile tugging at the side of her lips. Vi smirked back. They had both seen the uneasy shift in Sevika’s posture, the softening of tense muscles, the slight lean into the touch. Perhaps the captain and the asari had been doing more in their meetings than just talking.

Suddenly, Sevika cleared her throat. She stepped back from Mel and glared at Jayce.

“Do this again, Talis, and I will make sure you never see the cold light of day,” she threatened. “I expect an assessment and repair proposal in my console within the next five hours.”

Turning to the rest of the team, she pointed at the mess stations.

“Jericho left you some sort of stew. It’s delicious but you knew that. Eat and don’t fucking leave the place a mess.”

 Stomping back to the elevator, Sevika shot one last unreadable look at Mel over her shoulder before the door closed. The tension in the room left with the Turian. Jayce’s shoulders sagged in relief.

“See?” he said to Heim, voice bright. “No harm done.”

Heim’s expression was almost unreadable. Almost. Vi could see the hint of pure frustration that was tight around the Krogan’s mouth.

“The next time you refuse to listen to reason, Jayce, it will not be Sevika threatening to space you. It will be me.”

The big guy lumbered over to the mess, grabbing a plate, leaving Jayce speechless. Vi couldn’t help it. She started to laugh.

“Man, you look like a kicked puppy, Talis,” she found herself observing aloud. “If you pouted any more, you’d trip over your own lip.”

Jayce shot her a wounded look which just made Vi laugh harder. Then, he started to smile.

“Honestly, I deserved that.” Flopping himself into a chair at the table, he buried his face in his hands. “God, how could I have been so stupid?”

“It’s your ambition,” Caitlyn said, walking over with two plates of food. She slid one in front of Jayce and, to Vi’s surprise, one in front of her.

“Hey thanks, you didn’t have to…” Vi said, before her voice died in her throat. Caitlyn was shooting her a look that was molten. It was brief, but it was definitely there. A shiver went down Vi’s spine. Fighting the urge to blush, she wordlessly took a fork and dug into what appeared to be some kind of stew with potatoes. Caitlyn didn’t comment further. Instead, she continued to speak to Jayce.

“Sometimes, you don’t think before you act because you are used to it always working.”

“Way to read me for filth,” Jayce responded, looking dejected. Caitlyn placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

“It’s one of your best qualities and worst flaws,” she said. “You’re so busy thinking about whether you can that you don’t consider whether you should.”

Jayce smiled up at her, looking less deflated.

“Thanks Caitlyn. I’ll try to act with a little more forethought.”

“Please do,” she replied, with a cheeky look in her eyes. “I don’t think the Mel Magic Touch will save you a second time.”

“Oh really,” Mel was sprinkling some kind of herbs over her dinner. “Do you honestly believe I only have the one hook on Sevika?”

Tasting her food, she hummed in approval, before seeing the shocked, expectant and amused faces of her teammates. After a moment of consideration, Mel rolled her eyes at the rest of them.

“Do not look at me like that. I have no nefarious or lascivious advantages over her.”

“Yet,” Vi said, startling laughter out of Jayce, Caitlyn and surprisingly, Viktor. Mel had the decency to blush a slightly darker shade of purple.

“I will have you know, I take my role in this team exceptionally seriously. I am not one for compromising my focus.”

“Yeah, sure thing,” Vi countered. “Didn’t you say there wasn’t a fraternisation policy on this mission? Wonder why you left that out.”

This time even Mel laughed.

“You got me there, Vi,” she admitted. “And please do understand that the lack of policy is there for all of you to take advantage of.”

Vi felt her eyes shift to Caitlyn’s back as she served up another plate of food in the kitchen, before she immediately looked away. To make sure she didn’t say anything that would give the game away, she shoved a forkful of food into her mouth. Sevika was right, it was delicious. But it didn’t taste anywhere near as good as Caitlyn’s body had felt on top of hers. It didn’t satisfy her as much as tasting Caitlyn would.

Fuckin’ hell, she was gone.

Caitlyn, to her credit, was retrieving more meals for people, including getting a tube of nutritional gel for Viktor. Once everyone had a plate of food and cutlery, she served herself and sat down. Vi immediately clocked the change of behaviour. In the past, Caitlyn had kept herself separate, allowing people to help themselves, to take care of what they needed to do. This time, however, she seemed more… open. Helpful in ways that she hadn’t been previously.

What had changed?

With the same impeccable table manners she had demonstrated the entire time Vi had known her, Caitlyn began to eat. She was bolt upright, one hand resting politely next to her plate, the other wielding her utensil with the grace of a surgeon. It would be unnerving if it was anyone but Caitlyn, Vi realised.

“So, boss,” Vi opened the dialogue casually. It took a moment for Caitlyn to realise that she was being addressed. With a slight embarrassed look, she swallowed her food and looked expectantly at Vi, who smiled back before she asked the burning question:

“What’s the plan?”

Mel had also stopped eating, eyes flicking between Caitlyn and Vi. Caitlyn took a deep breath and put her fork down.

“From what I was working through before my holo-board had an unfortunate mishap…”

“I said I was sorry,” Jayce muttered. Caitlyn patted his hand reassuringly again.

“… The types that we might encounter on the station are not particularly experienced. My suggestion is they will try to take Sevika out the minute the ship docks.”

Vi’s expression went flat.

“Urgh, amateur move.”

“As I said, inexperienced,” Caitlyn commented in agreement. “I think our best move is a show of force. If we can convince them to drop this attempt and to leave Gospeck, we might be able to do this with minimal life loss.”

“Isn’t there a bonus for ridding the station of these guys though?” Vi wanted to know. Caitlyn shot her a sharp look that was simultaneously arousing and intimidating.

“Ridding the station of them doesn’t mean they die needlessly. I’d like to give them a chance to leave unharmed. Or at least alive.”

“Who is on the strike force?” Mel asked. Vi was surprised. She didn’t expect Mel to be so invested in a side objective. Caitlyn acknowledged the question with a nod.

“I would like Vi and Mel to act as support. These types will be easily intimidated by an asari commando in full gear and the infamous mercenary Vi.”

Vi felt a swelling of pride. That’s right, baby. She was infamous.

“Not me?” Heim asked, his voice steady. Vi couldn’t tell if he was offended or impressed. Caitlyn shook her head.

“Your role in this whole thing is to work with Jayce on a fix and upgrade for the power core of the Sinestrus. I need you to act both as overseer and negotiator with anyone who wishes to take Jayce for a ride in the deal.”

“A wise decision,” the Krogan replied, approvingly. “May I request Viktor also accompanies me? I find Quarian’s unerringly good at finding the best parts in a market.”

“I would be honoured,” Viktor said, smoothly. Vi blinked. Again, she’d thought he wasn’t paying attention. She had to stop underestimating the Quarian, seriously.

“Good idea,” Caitlyn agreed with the Krogan.

“I’m guessin’ you’re on point, Cupcake?” Vi asked, with a smile. To her surprise, Caitlyn shook her head again.

“Sevika will take point, as bait. She will be instructed to ask them to leave,” There was a pause, as if some decision was being set in stone in the future. “If they refuse…”

There was a chilly feeling in the air as Caitlyn leaned forwards. There was a hanging sense of pain in her eyes, a firmer set to her jaw. Her voice was steady.

“I make sure Gospeck Station management will get their wish.”

“Where will you be?” Vi wanted to know. She needed Caitlyn to not take any dumb risks, or chances. Caitlyn wasn’t like other people Vi had worked with. Caitlyn mattered. Unaware of her inner thoughts, the sniper fixed her with a smile that was part sadness, part duty. Vi felt a sense of that wall being built between Caitlyn and the rest of them again.

“I will be where I always tend to be. Somewhere with a clear and clean shot.”

There was a tension that fell across the table that made Vi’s heart hurt. It was as if all of them were frozen in time, locked in stone, that sometime in the future, something terrible would happen. Vi had never felt like this before a gig – it was always about the credits. In spite of the weirdness in the air, Caitlyn picked up her fork and continued to eat, appearing to consider the plan communicated. She saw Jayce’s fingers twitch, as if to reach out to touch Caitlyn, only for the man to appear to think again.

“Well, that killed the mood a little,” Viktor said calmly, before slurping from his tube again.

The tension around the table broke as amusement bubbled. Vi felt her eyes slide back to Caitlyn, who had a relieved smile on her face.

“Yes, well, I do think conversations about killing people isn’t normally good dining room talk,” Caitlyn riposted.

“I dunno, seems pretty standard to me,” Vi quipped.

“Yes, but you’re weird,” Caitlyn teased, with an easy smile.

Vi put a hand to her chest in mock offense, acknowledging the callback to her comment about Jayce, Heim and Viktor. The laugh that she got in response was worth every moment of possible humiliation. Underneath it all, Vi would do anything to see a pretty girl smile. Making Caitlyn laugh was worth any and all losses of credibility.

People returned to their meals. Viktor, as per usual, finished first, but spent some time talking with Jayce about some rare obscure detail of exactly what he had done to fuck up the power core. Vi noticed that Jayce would often stop eating when he was on a roll about some obscure theoretical engineering or scientific topic. Heim had to keep nudging him, reminding him that they only had five hours to figure out exactly what they needed to do to not only fix Jayce’s mistake but to upgrade the whole power system of the Sinestrus. Vi suspected it would cost a lot more than Jayce had realised.

Mel and Caitlyn were also talking. Well, Vi thought it was talking. It could have been verbal jousting or judo for all she knew. There was a constant tugging of power between the two. While Mel might have stepped aside for Caitlyn to do her job, Caitlyn seemed to need to constantly snark back, to remind the Asari that this was her mission. In return, Mel seemed to delight in gently pushing Caitlyn’s buttons. Vi didn’t know if it was for Mel’s own amusement or to galvanise Caitlyn in her role as a leader. Vi knew a little about teamwork. She knew leaders often worked the best when they believed in themselves. Perhaps Mel’s constant testing of Caitlyn was designed to do exactly that.

Returning to her plate of food, she couldn’t help but notice that Caitlyn kept glancing at her. Violently, Vi shoved memories of the pleasure thinking of Caitlyn had resulted in deep into the recesses of her awareness. While she knew Caitlyn couldn’t read her mind, she couldn’t help but think that her desire would be too clear, that her memories of pretending her own fingers were Caitlyn’s wouldn’t be too apparent.

No, it was better to just keep things as they were – to be grateful for Caitlyn’s thawing and to fantasise in her own time. Maybe, in a different universe, things could be different. But not here. Not now.

There were too many people at risk for her to indulge herself. Instead, Vi focussed on her dinner. The stew truly was delicious. And if they had the time, she might even get a nap in.

If she was being honest with herself, this gig had more perks than she had expected.

Chapter Text

Without the orange flooding light of the holo-board, Caitlyn could truly appreciate the overwhelming calm of the galaxy as it went by her viewing port. Perhaps Jayce’s misadventure was a blessing in disguise. Sevika had redirected some of the Sinestrus’s power to an emergency backup capacitor. While this meant they now had one full recharge of the shields in reserve, her quarters were only dimly lit by yellow emergency lighting. It made the stars, the mass effect field and the darkness of space more encompassing. It was a comfort that Caitlyn rarely acknowledged that she needed.

She had realised after chow time that she had around seven hours of downtime before she was expected to take leadership again. When Mel had told her that Sevika’s request for a five-hour window was for them to preserve energy by not overusing the mass drive core, while also reviewing the solutions proposed by Jayce and Heim, Caitlyn had originally been a bit miffed. Surely time was the imperative for the mission to hunt down the Prothean artefact? She had already felt pressed by the fact Sevika insisted on finishing her two cargo contracts before fully committing herself and her team to Mel’s endeavour.

But now, under the darkness of the universe, Caitlyn began to understand – they wouldn’t do themselves any favours rushing in without a completed base of operations and good connections between the team. The slowdown, while concerning, was necessary. It helped give the team more time to learn how to work together, to consider the objective briefings she had sent to all of them after she had finished her meal, and to possibly have a nap. She had already noticed the closeness of Mel and Sevika, and of Jayce, Heim and Viktor. Maybe a little bit of patience now would have dividends later. Maybe she could work on those connections herself, find ways to reach a synthesis with her teammates that would allow for more efficient communication.

Propping herself up on the bed more, she smiled slightly as she let the darkness wash over her. Here, in the intimate closeness of the dim lighting, she felt able to relax a little. Tension she hadn’t realised she’d carried began to seep from her body. In this moment, when it was just her and the universe, she allowed herself to think about the things she pushed away when she was on the clock. Immediately, her mind was filled with dark pink hair, storm grey eyes and tattoos. Broad shoulders, pert breasts and a trim waist. Rough-looking hands with thicker fingers than hers. A coarse undertone to a laugh that was both mocking and alluring. A warm fresh smell that she only got a trace of when she had pinned Vi to the floor. The feel of hard muscle under soft, inked skin. The ticking of a pulse under her forearm.

Caitlyn muttered a curse. It was disconcerting how quickly her mind latched onto Vi when she relinquished her self-control. What made it worse was how it physically affected her. She could already feel a dampness growing between her legs, a pulsing of her clit as blood rushed southwards. Caitlyn prided herself on her self-control and ability to remain cool and clear-headed. Right now, all that pride was dangerously misplaced. Fuck, she could even feel her nipples harden, rubbing against the cups of her bra. If she was honest with herself, she’d started to have this reaction to the mercenary even before she’d accidentally pinned Vi to the floor. She wasn’t unfamiliar with desire. Caitlyn had been with women before, both before and after Topside. She’d found it hard to connect afterwards, of course, struggling to hold the snow-blown sensations of numbness at bay when her heartrate rose above a certain level. Often, she was more comfortable taking care of her needs herself – it was easier, cleaner and resulted in less interpersonal drama. But there was such a pull towards the beautiful mercenary, and, in her own instinctive reactions, she’d made it a hundred times worse. Why did she have to pin Vi down? Why did she now know what that body felt like under her?

With a growl, she pulled herself out of her bed and walked towards the viewing port. Caitlyn wanted the universe to swallow her, to become one with something bigger than her own body. Perhaps that would make things better. To completely freeze out, to be zero Kelvin. She felt herself scoff – she’d spacewalked before, she knew the cold was conditional. It depended on what stars were around. The universe didn’t care for nuance. It was action and reaction. Not survivable, not matter how hot or cold…

Shaking the overthinking from her head, she reached out a hand to touch the plexiglass that made up the viewing port. It was cool, but not cold, thick enough to insulate from the friction of faster than light travel. The smoothness felt comforting under her fingertips, reliable and sturdy. She closed her eyes and let herself just… feel for a moment.

Memories flooded back. Last words, the popping of generators, the recoil of her rifle. A dressing down from a scowling asari matriarch tearing into her as she knelt in exhaustion, her limbs weak, sight blurry. Unfamiliar hands pressing into the bruises on her body, examining the bloodied wounds from shots that had penetrated her shields and armour. Whispers in the Alliance hospital, when they thought she was asleep, about culpability, interrogation and due process. The feeling of bone breaking beneath her hands as she blacked out, forgetting the hospital orderly was not a batarian pirate. The welcome emptiness of space, the feeling of being wrapped in alcohol, numb to the pain. Warm flesh under her hands, lips on her jaw…

Then guilt.

So much fucking guilt.

Caitlyn let it flow, focussing on her breathing, forcing herself to recall the streets of London that she lived on as a child. She pulled herself back into herself just before the break. It was a dangerously intoxicating sensation, but it helped remind her that ultimately, she was in control. With a shake of the head, she walked to her door and opened it to the mess. The darkness of the galaxy, while comforting, was also too tempting. She had made the choice to let herself run this team closely. She couldn’t afford to indulge, either in reverie or more erotic fixations.

The lounge area was populated by Jayce and Viktor. Viktor had a datapad that he was writing on. Jayce was fiddling with a motherboard. To Caitlyn’s surprise, Viktor had his legs draped over Jayce’s lap. However, on closer inspection she saw a heating pad underneath Viktor’s calves.

“Well, that looks cosy,” she commented with a grin. Jayce, to his credit, didn’t even blush.

“His muscles were giving him hell,” he said plainly. “Viktor said that he needed elevation and heat, so I figured I’d provide both. I thought it best to keep our medic in tip-top shape.”

“Uh huh,” Caitlyn made sure to make her tone disbelieving. Jayce smirked.

“How dare you mar my good intentions with your smut?” he retorted, good-naturedly.

“Good intentions?” Viktor muttered, using one long digit to scroll his datapad. “I thought you were just enjoying the feel of my legs over your body.”

Jayce’s jaw snapped shut and tensed, his eyes burning with a flash of something very adult in nature. Caitlyn giggled. Seemed like the Quarian knew exactly what was going on. She picked an armchair near them and threw herself into it. Jayce appeared to take the opportunity to divert the attention and put down his motherboard, shooting her an inquisitive look.

“What’s eating you, sprout?”

Caitlyn glanced at Viktor. Did she really want to talk about herself in front of him? Almost as if he could read her thoughts, the Quarian turned his head towards her, eyes glowing beneath his helmet.

“Do not censor yourself on my account. Knowing your psychology will help me with your treatment in the future. Plus, you’re protected by doctor/patient confidentiality.”

“Thanks,” Caitlyn responded, dryly. “Your attention to detail is duly noted.”

“You’re welcome,” the Medic said, before turning back to continue his notes. Jayce lightly rapped him on the shins in mocking reproach, before smiling at Caitlyn.

“See? No need to keep secrets here. What’s bugging you?”

She sighed and leaned back, looking away from Jayce. If Jayce said it was okay, then maybe it was? Taking a moment to compose herself, she began to talk.

“It’s Vi.”

“No shit.”

“Shut up.” Her lips turned up into a small smile despite herself.

“Sprout, I’ve known you long enough to know that you’re a gay disaster,” Jayce said warmly. “Vi is pretty much lesbian catnip. It’s ok to be a little thrown by her.”

“I’m not a little thrown,” Caitlyn retorted in defence. “I’m just…”

She paused, before speaking her next sentence quietly.

“How do you deal with someone when they seem so determined to get under your skin?”

“Oh, I let them” Jayce said, voice cocky and confident, leaning back and putting his hands behind his head.

“You let them?” Caitlyn responded in shock. That was not the answer she expected. Jayce nodded, a degree or two away from 'enthusiastically'.

“See, once I’ve got them where I want them, I’m the one that is in control.”

“Mhm,” Viktor mused, sounding slightly distracted, noting something else on that damn datapad. Again, Jayce tapped his knuckles against the legs across his lap.

“Shut up, you aren’t under my skin, Viktor.”

“Shame,” came the reply. Caitlyn was delighted to see Jayce’s expression freeze, a red tinge to his cheekbones.  Viktor took the opportunity to put his datapad down on the coffee table near him. His helmet turned towards Caitlyn again, and she felt his eyes on her.

“All fun aside, you are being overly analytical,” the Quarian said, shuffling to sit up. He hissed through his respirator in pain with the movement and Caitlyn felt her eyebrows go up. Viktor chuckled at her expression.

“This is normal when I push myself too far. You and Jayce need to relax. I know how to manage my condition,” he chided. “Anyway, as I was saying...”

“Isn’t it my job?” Caitlyn interjected. “To analyse? To have an angle on all scenarios?”

“When it comes to deployment of the investigation and best uses of our abilities, absolutely.” The response was firm. “However, I do not see this as one of those cases.”

“Well, it depends on her ability,” Jayce interrupted with a salacious grin. Caitlyn glared daggers at him. As per usual, he didn’t flinch. “C’mon, Sprout, this isn’t your typical deployment or police investigation. You’re a part of a rag-tag dream team of best in their fields, sent on a quest to possibly save the galaxy.”

“And, deep down, every single one of us is just… us,” Viktor said calmly, appearing to settle himself more comfortably upright. “We’re not machines, Caitlyn. We are more than the sum of our parts. Our abilities are not the things that should define us, not in a team this close or with a command structure this loose.”

Caitlyn thought on the statement. Viktor was a Quarian. Their command structure by nature of their survival was tied so deeply to their community, there was no parallel here. For him, people being people was just de rigueur. Under such a social hierarchy, it would be impossible for behaviour to be unsettling as the only thing that mattered was competency and the greater good. No, his conclusion wasn’t correct. She wasn’t struggling with the categorisation of the people around her or taking the idiosyncrasies as part of the benefits. That came as easy to her as breathing. This felt like an entirely different thing. Something beyond the allocation of resources, emotional or otherwise.

“I don’t mean to reduce people to their fundamental aptitudes,” she explained. “That’s not what this is about.”

“Then what is it about?” Jayce asked.

“I… I don’t know how to deal with feeling compromised, I guess,” she confessed, wrapping her arms around herself. “It’s easier to be distant, to not let things touch the sides. I rely on being clearheaded to keep myself upright. Vi’s behaviour… compromises that.”

“What makes you think Vi’s intention is to compromise you?” Viktor questioned, his head tilting to the side. “As I recall, she has been very upfront about her conduct being more of a coping mechanism than anything else.”

“That’s the issue, though, isn’t it?” Jayce jumped in. “You think she means nothing by it, but you want it to mean something, don’t you?”

Caitlyn again glared at her friend, ignoring the swoop in her stomach.

“Whether I want it or not doesn’t change the fact that it does compromise me,” she snapped. “What if I must make a hard call in the field? Or she does something dangerous or worse, wrong and I have to be the one to come down on her hard for the sakes of the others?”

“I’m sure Vi would have no problem with you coming-”

“Jayce, it is a valid concern Caitlyn’s raised,” Viktor smoothly interrupted, his tone warning Jayce to behave. “I can see how such attraction could impede your decision making, especially given control and compartmentalisation are your main coping strategies under pressure.”

He paused, slowly easing his legs off Jayce’s lap. Caitlyn saw the skitter of disappointment cross Jayce’s handsome face and immediately bookmarked it for further investigation in the future. Jayce had a habit of developing infatuations, and she really should make sure he was being safe with himself, at the least. The Quarian stretched his legs out and leaned down, pulling back on the toes of his boots to elongate the calves with a satisfied sigh.

“Let’s think about this situation through those lenses, shall we?” Viktor offered. Caitlyn nodded and the Quarian sat back, ticking a finger off.

“One, your innate need to control. You know as well as I do that any attempt to control someone like Vi is not only unethical, but impossible. Violet Lanes has spent most of her life rallying against authority, from her dishonourable discharge from the military to the countless roles she has played in resisting authoritarian forces across Omega and the Attican Traverse as a mercenary.”

Caitlyn blinked in surprise.

“How do you…”

“I have my own dossiers,” Viktor replied smoothly. “Mostly around psychological profiles and medical history. It was part of something I insisted upon when I took this role.”

“Wonder what you’ve got written about me,” Jayce winked at Viktor, nudging him lightly.

“Nothing worth reading, I assure you.” Ignoring Jayce’s splutter of mock offense, Viktor turned back to Caitlyn. “As I was saying, Vi might not admit to it, but she is a mercenary with the unique advantage of choosing whose orders she obeys. Her history reinforces this – while her earlier missions were somewhat morally grey, she has had consistent employment for reputable, only mildly criminal outcomes.”

He paused, appearing to consider something.

“Well, until around twenty four terra lunar cycles ago. She started taking more missions outside of her normal pattern and locale. But her rationale for those decisions is more your problem than mine.”

Caitlyn blinked, then bit the inside of her cheek. She hadn’t noticed the pattern as anything more than a mercenary pushing her luck. Was it worth looking into? She couldn’t answer the question. It felt like a violation of Vi’s personal business, but it could also be an important missing piece of the Omega puzzle. As she ruminated, Viktor continued to explain his reasoning:

“All of this points to someone who will do what she thinks is right, damn the consequences and command. By virtue of your power dynamic, any attempt to change that fundamental part of her personality is doomed to fail.”

Caitlyn felt herself tense. God damn it, Viktor was right. Trying to confine Vi’s behaviour would be counterintuitive to the very nature of the mercenary. With a nod to acknowledge the dawning realisation, the Quarian ticked a second finger up.

“Two, your compartmentalisation. It is your oeuvre, by virtue of nature or nurture, to think somewhat dualistically.”

“That seems like an oversimplification,” Caitlyn protested. “I do know that people aren’t often easily fit into boxes - Shut the fuck up, Jayce.”

The man of the hour lifted his hands in response, a smirk replacing any possible snarky response. Viktor sighed, his helmet lifting slightly with the sound.

“While I applaud your self-awareness…” he said, his tone was no less calm than before. “There is a difference between how we engage with our higher thinking in the calm and how we react in the moment. You are known to have an incredibly sharp, logical mind. That is a strength. But it can also become a weakness, when illogical elements are introduced to the state of play, things that cannot be put into a safe place by virtue of their very beings.”

He paused, and Caitlyn could swear she could see a grin behind the almost opaque brown of his helmet’s visor.

“Such as sexual attraction,” he continued. Caitlyn felt her face turn bright red. “Or emotional connection. It will muddy the data if it is allowed to come into contexts where it is unneeded. However, there is nothing to suggest those feelings and sensations cannot be welcome in other areas of your psyche.”

“Right.” Her lips felt numb again. Viktor seemed to appraise her, his head tilting a little as he rested his elbows on his knees and steepled his fingers in front of his helmet.

“You can see where I am going with this, of course. Perhaps the solution is found not in controlling or compartmentalising Vi, but in controlling and compartmentalising yourself.” Viktor leaned back a little, spreading his hands wide. “By engaging with your own management strategies to relieve the pressure you are receiving by virtue of your own instinctive nature, you leverage your natural aptitudes.”

“What Viktor is saying, Sprout,” Jayce said, a wicked smile on his face. “Is that if you need to turn the sound dampeners on and have a little self-care night, that’s an entirely appropriate strategy for managing your unrequited tragic sapphic crush.”

Caitlyn spluttered. She knew she was radiant with embarrassment at this point. Surely the Quarian would put a stop to Jayce’s abrasive silliness. The Quarian did appear to be considering his response carefully.

“That was not exactly what I had in mind,” he conceded, finally. “But as an example of the approach, such physical stimulation could be an efficient physical tactic to help put these thoughts where they belong.”

Scratch that, Caitlyn was going to never talk to either of these two again. She buried her face in her hands with a groan in embarrassment. This whole conversation was a mistake. After this, Viktor would never believe she was anything more than a silly human. Why did she think there could be a solution here? She felt Jayce’s hand on her shoulder. Peeking from between her fingers, she was surprised by the genuinely worried expression on his face.

“Caitlyn, it’s ok.” His voice was soft, warm and reassuring. “All mockery aside, it’s worth considering, right? You don’t have to always be hyper professional, especially not when you’re working with people like us.”

He looked around, a small smile on his face.

“For the foreseeable future, the Sinestrus is our home. You need to be able to switch off when you’re off duty, or you’re not going to be able to see the forest from the trees.”

His smile widened a little.

“Plus, Mel agrees with us,” he continued, matter of fact. “Remember, she’s the one who told you to give Vi some of your tragic backstory to assert your rationale for how you command. Consider the application of Viktor’s thinking maybe an extension of that?”

Caitlyn dropped her hands from her cheeks to glare at him. Tragic backstory really did undersell the events of Topside, and she did not appreciate it. In response, he gave a smaller shrug, eyes still kind.

“Hey, she’s heard more from you than I ever have about it.” If Jayce was bitter, she could not tell from his tone. “All I’ve got is the official reports, and whatever Mel thought I needed to know about your equipment.”

He paused, and Caitlyn saw the whisper of sadness cross that handsome face, causing her stomach to churn in regret. Then he continued:

“It’s your history to tell. I wasn’t going to pry.”

“Jayce, I’m sorry, I didn’t realise I hadn’t…”

He cut her off with a hand and another smile.

“I didn’t bring it up to make you feel bad, Sprout. I bring it up to show you that you’re still in control of the narrative here, no matter how much you might feel off kilter,” Jayce said. “You just need to change the context and apply the same coping mechanisms. Right, Viktor?”

“Correct,” the Quarian confirmed, smoothly. “Better to use what you naturally do rather than trying to change someone or something else’s fundamental nature. We Quarians learned that lesson the hard way.”

Caitlyn leaned back into the chair. What they were proposing made sense. This was her home for the foreseeable future. The people around her could not just be part of a working team, they would also be part of her social needs. This was an element that had to be accounted for. Perhaps Vi was just a symptom of a bigger future problem? One where her standoffishness could be read as arrogance, or her desire to control herself be read as snobbishness. She was already aware of Eve’s distaste for her. Should that spread, it would make her work with Mel and Sevika a lot more unpleasant.

She felt her mind flash back to Topside. This was the same problem she had with her team there – a misunderstanding of her intentions. What she thought was leadership was read as ambitious. She couldn’t afford to have that occur here. Still, it didn’t resolve the tension between herself and Vi. She closed her eyes, remembering the feeling of the mercenary below her, the sensation of pressing herself down hard onto her core. A shiver went through her body, molten and direct.

How could she control or compartmentalise that feeling?

Unknowing of her internal conflict, Jayce stood and stretched.

“You do realise that the people around you will like you if you loosen up,” he said, casually. “I mean, I do, and I have exceptional taste.”

Caitlyn had opened her mouth to respond, only to hear Mel’s door opened. Turning, she saw the Asari approach. Surprisingly, Mel was wearing what looked to be comfortably fitted pants and a short sleeved wraparound top in white and gold. Caitlyn felt her eyebrows raise. She’d only ever seen the Asari in her red and black commando gear, or her formal threads.

“Ah, just the people I was hoping to run into,” Mel said by way of greeting.

“What can we do for you?” Viktor responded, politely. Mel lifted a datapad.

“I was examining some of your requisitions for the medbay,” she explained. “While I understand the breadth and depth of your requests, do you really require these specific antibiotics and antihistamines?”

Caitlyn saw Jayce’s eyes narrow in puzzlement as he looked over at the Quarian. To his credit, Viktor gave a casual shrug.

“Due to my immunocompromised nature, if I were to experience a suit rupture, I am far more susceptible to infection and reaction than other Quarian.” The response was easy in tone, but Caitlyn felt like the Quarian was being a little too smooth. “There may be some scenarios where Caitlyn might require my expertise, and I do like to be prepared for any possible outcome.”

“Oh, so it is not for a shared environment purpose?” Mel asked innocently. “Given the very specific nature of the request, I did have to wonder. While I have no issue with it, the products you have requested are expensive and I would like to check that you would be using them for maximum benefit.”

Caitlyn held back a giggle at the frozen expression on Jayce’s face. While Jayce was a notorious flirt, she understood the fact that in this scenario, Viktor appeared to hold all the cards. However, the Quarian was not one to be pushed off balance.

“Whatever another may consider the medication useful for, I can assure you, it is only ordered for the rare event that I may be engaged in fieldwork,” Viktor responded, evenly. “As can be seen by the minute quantity.”

“Mhm,” Mel did not sound convinced. She looked expectantly at Jayce, who flushed further. Caitlyn could feel Jayce’s embarrassment flood the mess. He cleared his throat.

“Is that the hour?” He glanced at his omnitool. “I really must go check on Heim. There’s… a thing we’re observing and… the results are… very important.”

He stood quickly and made his way to the elevator.

“Please do not blow up the engine room again,” Mel called out at his retreating back as the doors closed behind him. There was a long pause. Then Viktor began to chuckle.

“You really are very cruel to him,” the Quarian commented in amusement.

“It is his fault,” Mel replied, sequestering herself on the couch next to Viktor. “He is just too easy to tease."

Crossing one leg over the other, she rested her elbow on the couch arm, her temple leaning on two fingers, a picture of catlike relaxation.

“I like watching a handsome human cringe.”

In spite of the complicated dynamic between herself and Mel, Caitlyn felt herself laugh. If anyone deserved a taste of his own medicine, it was Jayce. Viktor seemed to share her amusement, chuckling.

“As do I,” he said, before pausing. “We really should arrange a mockery schedule. I do worry for his mental resilience.”

“Viktor, please do not be concerned,” Mel waved a hand airily. “Jayce thinking he is being pursued by the two of us will probably do wonders for his ego, once he recovers from his embarrassment.”

“Are you pursuing him?" Caitlyn asked. Jayce was her best friend. She didn’t want him being… well, taken in by Mel’s machinations, but she did know he was no stranger to romantic entanglements of all types. The Asari looked at her, eyebrow raised

“If I was, would that be much of an issue?”

“I might have a problem with it,” Viktor said, and Caitlyn was surprised to hear a measure of steel in his voice. “Not that I think he cannot handle you.”

“Are you underestimating me, my dear?” Mel riposted, her eyes bright with amusement.

“Not at all,” Viktor responded with similar mirth, kicking his boots up on the coffee table. “Just giving that man kudos for his adaptability. He does seem to be very open minded and experimental.”

Caitlyn stood before Mel could counterpoint and further up the stakes.

“I don’t think you need my input on this discussion,” she said, with a small smile. Jayce was big enough and experienced enough to deal with two romantic pursuers. She would keep an eye on him, of course, but who was she to interfere with his fun? Mel turned her smile to Caitlyn.

“So, I cannot count on your inside information to assist me in this endeavour tactically?” she commented, wickedly.

“I would consider that cheating,” Viktor interjected. “Foul play, of sorts.”

Caitlyn laughed softly and shook her head as she walked back to her quarters. Honestly, it was nice to hear the two of them bantering. It spoke to a good working relationship that could transition into friendship, which was always good to be around.

Entering, she once again felt encompassed by the dim lights. It was still comforting to be alone, still a sensation of safety in the darkness with only the stars outside the observation port for company. Maybe she still did have a way to go regarding her social stamina…

Walking over to her desk, she opened her console, squinting against the orange projection above the station. Swiping through her files, she pulled up the diagram of Gospeck Station that Mel had sent her. Turns out, the Asari had been incredibly thorough with her recon of each location they were slated to visit prior to Omega. The station was a medium outpost, with a few wards for employees who manned the trading port and the shipyard, as well as a new construction for an entertainment and financial district.

“Looks like Vern has ambitions…” Caitlyn muttered to herself, navigating her way to the points of entry. There was a larger dock for freighters, such as a frigate like the Sinestrus, as well as a smaller loading dock on a lower level for shuttles. The two docks were connected by both an elevator and an emergency ladder. The elevator appeared to be designed for cargo, with a heavily encrypted and double reinforced door. Ingress from that perspective would not be subtle and she couldn’t trust that she could remain unseen. Caitlyn leaned in more closely, looking at the other option. The emergency ladder was protected by a standard lock, easy to bypass with her newly improved omnitool. Climbing it would take some time, but it would pop her out in the back corner of the main docking area, right next to a ladder that would allow her access to the gantry above the main dock. This ladder was not protected, clearly used for maintenance of the large cargo tracks in the roof,

She would have to ask Sevika, but if she could get the shuttle in the hanger to drop her down at the smaller dock well before the main frigate arrived, she could make her way unseen to somewhere where she had the higher ground. She could then communicate with her team, set up some traps, and lie in wait to see Sevika, Vi and Mel could talk some sense into the desperate. Yes. This would work well. Decision made, she quickly sent a message to Sevika through her omnitool. Usually, she would have called her over the comms, but Caitlyn wanted to give the Turian a little more time to cool off. While it had been a few hours, Caitlyn didn’t really want to be on the receiving end of the level of ire Sevika had demonstrated when Jayce had blown part of her ships energy grid.

In the meantime, she really did need to make sure all her equipment was functioning as expected. As she made her way from her quarters to the elevator, waving at Mel and Viktor who were still discussing god knows what, Caitlyn realised that, despite herself, she had already begun to close the gap between her professional and personal. Hell, wasn’t caring about Jayce’s relationship adventures or bantering with Viktor and Mel kind of exactly what she had been so afraid to do? She thought back to the conversation with Sevika, about how well the Turian appeared to not only manage her but know her. And was she not doing the same with all of them?

Without thinking, she hit the button for the hanger and took a moment to enjoy the silence of the space as it moved between levels. Perhaps she had been deluding herself from the beginning. It wasn’t just the people. The ship itself had started to feel very familiar. She knew which of the walkway grates under her boots here would squeak, understood how to brace if the ship needed to move in certain ways, could press the button for any level without looking at the interface. The Sinestrus was becoming as much of a base as anywhere else she had been stationed, yet the people made it feel more like a home.

Chapter Text

Vi sprang lightly from foot to foot, letting her body get used to the new addition of her battle harness and protective plates. She had customised the fit with Heim overseeing and advising, but Vi was a physical person. She needed to get used to how the armour moved, where the loadout could be tightened or loosened with the webbing harness straps the protective plates were attached to. Jayce has asked for as much feedback as possible, and Vi was nothing if not obliging…

“Will you stop that?” Sevika snarled, unamused. “You’re making the elevator bounce.”

There was also the added benefit of tugging on Sevika’s last nerve. The Turian was fidgety too, turning her heavy pistol over in her hand, tugging at the collar of her armour, but compared to Vi’s boisterous warm up, she could have been carved from stone. Vi shot her a wide mouthed grin.

“Sorry, Sevika, you know how it is. Gotta get used to the new equipment.”

“I’m sure that’s the only reason you’re being a pain in the ass.”

“Absolutely. No ulterior motive here.”

A chuckle came from Mel, who was leaning gracefully against the elevator cabin wall.  The Asari was in her tight black and red commando uniform, a submachine gun maglocked to her waist. The three of them were making their way up from the loadout area in the hanger to the docking entrance on the bridge. Caitlyn’s mission briefing documentation had been very clear as to where they were to rendezvous, what time, and that full loadout was the minimum expected. Vi had smirked at the comment – Caitlyn had written something in the briefing notes to the tune of in this case, looks matter as much as aptitude.

And Vi knew she looked good. The webbing harness and armour plates over a tight short-sleeved grey compression shirt and her armoured pants made her feel like a complete fucking badass. The best part was the options the loadout offered. If she needed to go stealth, she could reduce her armour plates to only cover vitals. She could wear the full-length grey and blue insulated compression suit and breather helmet if she needed to spacewalk or land on a hazardous planet. Heim had developed the smart textile technology to be both comfortable and incredibly durable, Jayce had said, and they wanted to test the prototype in field. Who better than a close-up specialist to see how much their products could endure?

All this being said, Vi was disappointed that she didn’t get to suit up with Caitlyn. When they had entered the hanger, she had immediately clocked the missing shuttle and asked Sevika what was going on. Hearing that Caitlyn had requested an early recon drop onto Gospeck Station had caused some worry. What if something happened? Their commlinks were still connected, sure, but Caitlyn would have to clear the comms firewall on Gospeck to open a channel before they could talk, so she was completely isolated until they came within range.

When she had raised these concerns, however, Mel had no seemed as concerned as she should be:

“You are worried that Caitlyn, an expert in recon, information gathering and infiltration, will get caught out on a commercial space station that she has full permission to be on?”

Well, when you put it like that…

The elevator finally arrived at the bridge. As the doors opened, Vi caught the deep breath that Sevika took before she stepped out. The Turian, while no more prickly than usual, seemed to be nervous. If Vi had to guess, it was because the briefing had been incredibly clear as to her role. Sevika was to deliver the warning to the people trying to kill her. Vi and Mel were to flex their arms and look tough.

And Caitlyn…

The mission ops mentioned a contingency that she would be responsible for. While hazy on the details, Vi did note that Caitlyn had emphasised the need to stay on the docking bridge unless she gave the command. An uncomfortable feeling gnawed in Vi’s gut. Contingency from the person who set up exploding generators to create a death funnel was a terrifying concept.

Mel followed Sevika towards the CIC and Vi fell in step behind the Asari. Lucanius looked up from his terminal and inclined his head, a small show of respect that Vi realised was about as much as Sevika would accept from her fellow Turian veteran.

“We are a few moments out from docking,” he rumbled by way of greeting. “Comms are still dark with our illustrious squad leader, but I suspect that will be resolving soon.”

“If we weren’t running on reduced energy capacity, we could have boosted our transmission coverage,” Sevika commented, voice dark.

Vi felt a scowl cross her face.

“If something happens to Cait, I’ll be adding it to pretty boy’s bill,” she found herself muttering. Mel, as astute as ever, smirked at her.

“It really is rather sweet how much you care for Caitlyn’s well-being. I will pass on your concern, if it makes you feel better.”

“Don’t you fucking dare, Asari.”

Mel laughed. Sevika shot them both a look.

“While you might have faith in Kirramman’s capabilities, she’s not the one with the price on her head walking into a trap.”

“You said yourself that we’re going up against the inexperienced,” Mel countered.

“I also said they were desperate.” Sevika kept her eyes on the diagram of the approaching station projected in the middle of the CIC. “And desperate people do dumb desperate things.”

“So, I’m right to be worried?” The hair on Vi’s neck rose as she spoke. Sevika snorted.

“If Caitlyn’s as good as I think she is, I’m more worried for my part of the plan than hers.” The Turian paused. “I have no clue how I’m going to convince these idiots to back the fuck off without someone trying to shoot me.”

Vi blinked. So that was why Sevika was tense. It wasn’t her concern for Caitlyn, but her worry about having to play the face. It made sense. Sevika was a shoot-first kind of Turian. She was better at conviction by gun barrel than by negotiation. Vi could relate. She was charismatic when she needed to be, but most of the time, pulling the trigger worked better than speaking.

After another, longer pause where she stared at the hologram in the middle of the CIC, Sevika sighed again.

“Well, better get my friendly negotiation face on. C’mon, Mel, Vi, let’s get our shit together.”

“Aye aye, Captain,” Vi retorted. Sevika whirled on her.

“Listen, you little shit…”

Vi smirked.

“Hey, just trying to help you get into character.” Butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth with the tone she aimed for. “If you’re gonna swear at someone, better me than the folk you’re trying to convince.”

“Correct,” Mel added. “We cannot have you stomping out there a ball of raging nervous energy. Not exactly the point of the little merciful amendment Caitlyn insisted upon, is it?”

Sevika growled, her shoulders going rigid. Vi fought back her grin, pressing her lips together tightly. Obviously, she and Mel were at least a little on the same page. Sevika needed to let off some steam. Otherwise, it was going to be the bloodbath that Caitlyn seemed so desperate to avoid.

“Don’t push me,” the captain snapped. “Either of you. I’m good. I got this.”

“Yeah, you’re the picture of calm and rational right now.” Vi allowed herself a slight eyeroll. “I totally believe you’re willing to let people go if they surrender and not shoot them in the fucking skull for daring to waste your time.”

“Shut your fucking mouth, Vi.”

“Or what? You’ll space me?” Vi shrugged lightly, eyes quickly flicking over to Mel who inclined her head slightly. “Way to make me feel safe. Didn’t anyone ever teach you the art of negotiation?”

Vi didn’t resist as the taller Turian suddenly charged at her, pinning her to the wall of the Sinestrus’s bridge with her prosthetic forearm, the other claw pushing a heavy pistol right under her jaw. She saw the move coming a mile away, but that wasn’t the point.

Both she and Mel had been given an extra prompt from Caitlyn to ‘manage Sevika’s nervousness’. When Vi had sent back a message that involve a recording of her laughing hysterically, she was surprised by Caitlyn’s reaction, in the form of another recording:

I understand you find the concept funny, but let’s not beat about the bush. Mel can prompt an outburst, but it will be directed at you. Which means you will be the one to calm Sevika’s anxiety. Good luck.

She’d almost sent back Do I get a kiss if I survive? but thought better of it. Instead, she fought the urge to listen to the message again for the cheeky well wishes at the end and sent a message to Mel asking for her strategy.

All Mel had to say was “be annoying” and that was that.

Vi smirked a little, pressing her jaw to the barrel of Sevika’s gun. She’d upheld her end of the bargain, but it was worth making sure the point had been hammered home.

“Wow,” she husked. “I feel so reassured.”

The tension could have been cut by an omniblade. Sevika’s mandibles flared, her eyes glowering at Vi but the gun pressed into Vi’s jaw was still, cold and firm. The pause stretched and Vi fought to keep her eyes from flicking over to Mel to call for help. Sevika was breathing heavily, shoulder shifting under her armour. Then the light in her eyes shifted to confusion:

“And Vi doesn’t move, doesn’t retaliate…” the Turian murmured gun barrel moving a little this way and that way under Vi’s jaw. “Why? I’m in her favourite range… Unless this was intentional and she’s waiting for a…”

Knowledge dawned across her face. She suddenly huffed a laugh, her gaze sliding away from Vi to Mel.

“Ok, Asari. You got me.”

She pulled the gun away from Vi. The mercenary would have been offended if she wasn’t relieved that Sevika had put it all together. Vi could have done without the Asari’s triumphant smirk in response though. No wonder Caitlyn was so consistently irritated.

“Well, we had to make sure that your mind was as readily equipped as your body.”

Was Mel flirting?

“Consider it a form of pressure release.”

Yep. Definitely.

Surprisingly, Sevika coughed lightly, and Vi blinked.

And it was working???

“While I appreciate the judgement call,” Sevika said, appearing to attempt to regain control. “I don’t like that you thought I didn’t have my temper on lock.”

“Oh, it was not my observation that led to this,” Mel replied airily, hips swaying as she approached them both. “You can thank our illustrious squad leader for the insight.”

“Kirramman.” The reply was instant and gritted. “Of course.”

“Was she wrong?” Vi piped up. “You did immediately default to trying to blow my head off.”

“Well, that’s because it’s you.”

The comment was accompanied by a half bashful, half joking Turian smirk and Vi laughed. Sevika continued:

“But I take your point. Being the face is not something I’m good with, especially with my life on the line.”

She shot a positively scalding glare at Mel.

“I guess I’ll have to tone it down and trust you.”

Mel, to her credit, only flushed a little.

“And for that, I thank you. So, shall we?”

The Asari gestured towards the airlock. The ship shuddered as it docked, clearly connecting to the gangway. Sevika nodded, glancing at Vi.

“Ready?” she asked. Vi shook her arms out, comfortable with the way the armoured plating settled across her muscles.

“Never been more eager to look tough and intimidating.”

Sevika snorted. Vi noticed that the Turian seemed to be far more settled than before. Seemed like Caitlyn had her number perfectly. And all it took was a pretty lady…

“Just keep an eye on my flank and don’t get too excited. Scar, open the airlock.”

“Gotcha, boss.” The reply came through Vi’s comm’s earpiece. “Good luck. Put on your friendly face.”

The reply, while in Turian, was clearly full of cursing despite Sevika’s strange half smile. Vi snorted and popped a fresh heatsink into her shotgun as they stepped into the decontamination chamber of the airlock. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mel check the sights on her submachine gun. Sevika just looked ahead, joviality fading as she settled as still as a stone.

The sound of disembarking protocols faded into the back of Vi’s mind as she felt herself resolve into the character of ‘Vi, Infamous Badass’. Caitlyn had been very clear on her expectations – the people after Sevika were considered amateurs and any leverage she could gain through performance would go no small ways to making sure they were off kilter. She could feel her squadmates doing the same. Mel had even allowed a shimmering barrier of biotic energy to begin to cycle across her body. Clearly, the Asari knew all about intimidation.

All they had to hope was that Sevika wouldn’t just plug the first person to order her to down arms. To her credit, the Turian’s heavy pistol stayed maglocked to her hip. At the least Sevika seemed to be trying not to appear overly aggressive. Just vaguely intimidating…

Finally, after far too long, the airlock opened. The disembarkment ramp stretched across to the dock, full of crates and storage containers with a high gantry above. Vi clocked around twelve bogeys, ranging from human, asari and vorcha to krogan and turian. All of them wore battle armour, some worn, some well maintained. This wasn’t exactly the desperate amateurs that Vern had briefed them on. Vi fought the urge to curse, forcing her expression to remain stony. It seemed like the level of danger had been downplayed.

Sevika’s expression turned stormy. Clearly, she had noticed the same discrepancy in opposition that Vi had. Despite the danger, she stepped forwards, her boots clanking on the walkway. A high reedy voice met her:

“Sevika Aesecus.” A pale yellow Salarian in dark green battle harness stepped out from behind some boxes, assault rifle pointed in the Turian’s direction. “You’re one hell of a rich catch.”

Sevika scoffed, folding her arms. Still, she stopped walking, weight shifting to well-balanced.

“Far too rich for your blood, eyelicker.” The retort was harsh. “Nice desperate crew you’ve got here. Have you told them what they’re up against?”

There was a pause. Vi took the opportunity to crack her knuckles, with a wicked smile, before lowering her new visor with one hand, the other holding her shotgun casually over her shoulder. The salarian scoffed.

“A human and an asari. Nothing we've not seen before.”

Vi felt a hum of biotic energy come from Mel. Out of her periphery, she noticed that Mel had focussed her barrier into her forearms, a few errant arcs flickering in her eye sockets. Vi fought the urge to laugh. While the control was impressive, she knew that the choice of position was pure intimidation. If Mel wasn’t an asari, Vi would have accused her of posturing. What was more amusing was how well it appeared to work. After a pause, two human males quietly exited into a shuttle stationed further down the docks. Vi wouldn’t be surprised if the ship left the moment there was a large enough distraction.

Sevika had clocked it too, it seemed:

“Looks like some of your team don’t share your confidence”

The salarian paused, looking around furiously. Instantly, he scowled, noticing the absence.

“What is your problem?” he snarled. “Are you afraid of this pathetic display? There’s only three of them!”

“An Asari commando, Sevika Aesecus, and the Merc Vi?” A krogan nearby was putting his shotgun back into maglock on his lower back. “Yeah, I might be dumb but I ain’t stupid. Have fun with these ones, Heenot. I don't like your chances.”

“Coward,” Heenot shot back, eyes flashing. “At the least we don’t have to share the bonus with you!”

The Krogan shook a hand at the salarian, before entering the same ship as the two humans. Vi counted the remainders under her breath – nine visible hostiles remained. It wasn’t unreasonable, but they were at a slight disadvantage due to the chokepoint of the entry ramp. Sevika cleared her throat.

“We’re going to give the rest of you idiots one chance to back off.” Her voice rang out. “Keep your lives and leave.”

“We have you dead to rights, Aesecus!” Heenot retorted over the barrel of his assault rifle as he lifted it to his eye. “Intimidation aside, we have all the cover and over double the numbers. Bloodpack want you dead.”

Sevika snorted, moving to place a claw on the handle of her heavy pistol.

“Something always wants me dead,” she snarled, coldly. “This is just Bloodpack’s turn to try.”

“Sevika…” Mel said, voice soft in warning. “Remember, minimal bloodshed.”

“Fuck that,” Sevika grumbled. “I gave them their chance.”

“Keep your hands where I can see them, Turian!” Heenot cried.

“Or you’ll do what?”

“I said stop!”

A single shot pinged off the hull of the Sinestrus. Vi could almost hear the creaking of Sevika’s jaw as her mandibles tightened, freezing her expression.

“You just shot my ship.” Her voice was cold. Her body was stiff. Vi could feel the rage building in the captain. This was very quickly not going according to plan.

“It was a warning shot,” Heenot retorted, his voice shaking despite his apparent bravado. “The next one will be through your skull!”

Oh boy. This dumbass…

“Are you really that confident?” Mel interjected. “Consider what you are asking these people to lay their lives down for. We can promise you, we are not amenable to threats.”

“There’s three times the amount of us than there are of you,” came the reply from the Salarian. “And we don’t have to take any of you in alive. We’ll still get paid if you’re cold.”

Mel glanced at Sevika, who was still frozen in anger, staring unblinkingly at Heenot. Vi inhaled through her teeth. Where was Caitlyn? They were standing there in the open. Armed to the teeth, sure, but they didn’t have the numbers or the cover for an extended engagement. What kind of contingency did their illustrious squad leader have planned?

There was a soft crackle in her earpiece as the private comms opened and Vi released a breath she didn’t even realise she was holding as Caitlyn’s voice came through:

“Just keep them talking. Maybe try to caution them one more time? I’m almost in position.”

Keep them talking? Vi looked back over at Sevika, who’s face had shifted from hatred to loathing as she stared down at Heenot. Mel had also fallen silent, her own weapon moving between targets as if she was trying to pick the best way forwards. Guess it was Vi’s turn.

“Lemme give you all one last warning.” Vi found herself calling out, her voice ringing through the hanger. “Make like your smarter compatriots and scram.”

She let her biotics flare, shifting her shotgun into both hands, casually lifting it as if she was checking the slide of the reload mechanism. She focussed on making the gesture look effortless, a lazy cocky smile spreading across her face.

“Trust me, you really don’t wanna try your luck.”

The air was thick with tension. Vi saw a bead of what looked like sweat on Heenot’s cheek, could hear the pop of the heatsink he quickly inserted into his assault rifle, before his thumb appeared to flick the gun to full auto.

“No one is faster than a gun, mercenary. Back off or you’ll get the same. We don’t care who we kill so long as we pop the Turian first.”

“Consider it cutting both ways,” Vi retorted. “You really wanna go one-on-one with us? I haven’t tangled with a Salarian in a hot minute…”

She took a step forwards and Heenot swung his assault rifle towards her with a jerk. She saw the finger shift to the trigger, watched his shoulders stiffen as he braced. Quickly, she let her biotics flare, preparing to charge. Out of her peripheral, Sevika’s hand was moving, heavy pistol deploying. Mel was lifting a hand, a barrier spreading from her fingertips to cover in front of them.

Boom-pock-click.

The noises happened in quick succession and Heenot flew forwards. Well, what was left of Heenot. Part of his skull was missing, the remaining bits of his face slack and charred. His corpse travelled with no small momentum, a sickening thud as it hit the gangway, curled up, gun loose in his grip.

Boom-pock-click.

Vi spotted it just as it happened. A human who had rounded the storage container, sniper rifle in hand was carried sideways by the shot’s momentum, his helmet broken, neck twisting sickeningly. Guns whirled, some errant shots echoing as the gang of bounty hunters turned, seeking their enemy.

There was nothing there.

Another horrible pause stretched on, attention wildly shifting from the three of them on the gangway and to anywhere the shooter could logically be hiding. Then, a vorcha gave an inhuman panicked call and charged out from near the fluid tanks of the refuelling system, shotgun at the ready. Vi lifted her own weapon, prepared to meet the creature head on.

Boom-pock-click.

She needn’t have bothered, it seemed.

That horrifying cry was cut short as the vorcha crumpled, head whipping as the shoot tore through its face. There was now a large fleshy bleeding hole where the vorcha’s tooth-filled mouth used to be. The vorcha’s hands weakly reached for the wound, a single claw dipping into the mess the shot had left before another boom-pock-click rang out and a hole was punched through its chest. The creature fell still.

Another crackle in Vi’s earpiece overran her dawning sense of horror.

“Now.”

Caitlyn’s command was clear in her earpiece. Shaking off any hesitation, Vi charged forwards, letting her biotics coalesce around her body. Beside her, Sevika was sliding to cover behind one of the eaves of the Sinestrus’s airlock and hull. Mel was already in movement, throwing a ball of biotic energy towards some crates that had been stacked on top of one another as cover, collapsing them on an Asari who was too slow on the biotic draw.

Vi pressed the advantage. A single biotic punch launched a turian off into the depths of the station. Then Vi whirled, shotgun whipping out, finger pumping the trigger as heatsink after heatsink popped. Her covering fire worked; Sevika picked off the head of the human from the side as he crouched behind a crate, firing blindly.

Looking around, Vi saw the shuttle that three of their targets had retreated to had pulled away from the dock. Clearly, the krogan and his human companions had decided life was worth more than credits. The sound of a submachine gun rang out as Mel took care of one of the last humans, riddling her with accurate sprays before launching her off the dock with a biotic throw.

The last bounty hunter, a young-looking grey turian with a medium fringe in muted green armour, threw his gun to the ground and stepped out from behind his cover, claws in the air.

“I give up!” his voice was shaking as he got to his knees in front of them. “Don’t shoot!”

Sevika lifted her pistol at him, only for Mel to put a hand on her arm.

“What is your name, Turian?” she asked, her tone a mix of calm and pointed.

“Deckard,” came the reply. Vi noticed purple markings on his face, clan insignia that appeared fresh and new.

“Unusual name for a Turian. Guessin’ that’s a nickname?” she commented, trying not to smirk. Deckard was shaking, eyes shifting from Vi to Sevika to Mel and then back to the mercenary. Vi maglocked her shotgun. He was going nowhere.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Too ashamed to use your clan’s name.” Sevika spat poisonously. “Considering the circumstances, can’t say I’m fucking surprised.”

“This was my first job offworld,” Deckard mumbled in protest. “I wanted to try make something of myself.”

“And you thought falling in with this crew was the right move.” Sevika’s tone could cut through tungsten. “Idiot. I should shoot you out of my mild sense of national pride.”

“Don’t shoot him.”

Vi looked up. Caitlyn had appeared almost out of thin air. She was standing on the gantry that ran above the dock, sniper rifle held at ease, one armoured boot on the railing. Vi felt her mouth go dry. Caitlyn’s battle loadout was a dark set of angular armour, pulsing with golden LEDs and a yellow visor over one of her eyes that looped over her ear. The rifle itself was ornate, with what looked to be a wooden stock and golden filigree wrapping around a dark metal barrel with a powerful looking sight. Her dark blue hair was pulled back into a ponytail, a few strands around her face.

Caitlyn looked sexy and dangerous, sharp eyes looking down at the four of them amongst the bodies, three of which she was responsible for. Perhaps that’s why her eyes were a little hazy, her face carved in a mask of professionalism. Perhaps killing wasn’t as easy as she made it look.

Vi took it upon herself to cheer the badass sniper up.

“Didn’t see you up there,” she called, teasingly. "Guessin' you're a champion at hide-and-seek."

In response, Vi was sure she saw a ghost of a smile on Caitlyn’s face. With a push, the sniper launched herself down from the walkway, the reinforcement at her joints hissing as they took the brunt of the impact as she landed. She collapsed her rifle and placing it on the maglock on her back, before standing up and rolling her shoulder.

“It took some doing,” the squad leader replied. “Had to use the service ladder after cracking the security on the service dock downstairs. Was slow movement, even with my cloaking upgrade."

Ah. That's how she did it.

"Thanks for keeping their attention as I took my place," Caitlyn continued. "Although I do wish they had listened to you when you told them to leave.”

“Three of them did,” Sevika interjected. “Smarter than this one, for sure.”

She kicked the kneeling Turian. Vi noticed that while there was impact, it wasn’t nearly as hard as she could have done. Deckard still winced.

“Be gentle with him,” Mel chided. “He’s just a boy.”

“A stupid boy,” Sevika retorted.

“Smart enough not to use his clan name,” Caitlyn said, casually. “Clearly, he’s related to someone in the Hierarchy well known enough that it matters.”

Vi could see the cogs turning in Sevika’s head. Mel was faster on the uptake.

“Are you suggesting that he not be one of the hungry and desperate? Perhaps, that someone else put him up to this?”

“No one put us up to this,” Deckard protested. “We’re just some Omega level street thugs who were trying to take advantage of a bounty.”

“Then why aren’t you with the Blue Suns?” Vi asked, catching on. “That’s where most of the outlaw Turians prove themselves…”

Deckard looked up at her. If Turians could perspire, she suspected he would be sweating bullets. He blinked at her, his mandibles shifting. Sevika leaned down and grabbed his face in her prosthetic claw.

“Listen, kid, I don’t give a varren’s ass who the fuck your parents are. How did you fall in with this pathetic group of bounty hunters? We were told they would be low level crooks, but you don’t seem to be of that calibre.”

“All of them were far too well equipped to be merely desperate outlaws,” Caitlyn concurred. “Especially you. Even in muted green, I recognise Armax Arsenal Predator loadouts.”

She walked over to the assault rifle the Turian discarded. Deckard wrenched his face from Sevika’s grip to follow the sniper as she moved across the field.

“If I’m not mistaken, and I rarely am…” she picked up the weapon. “This is a Haliat Armory Thunder VI. Hardly standard issue for a mere street level thug.”

Deckard opened his mouth to protest but no sound came out. Mel looked at him expectantly, arms folded across her chest.

“Something you wish to tell us all, Deckard?”

There was a horrifying pause. The young Turian’s eyes flicked from Sevika to Vi, and then rested on Caitlyn, a suddenly strange light in his eyes.

“You don’t understand what you’re going into, Kirramman,” the Turian finally said, voice shaking, his claws firm behind his head. Despite the submissive posturing, his overall build was still and firm.

Just like a perfectly trained soldier, Vi realised, with a dawning sense of dread. What the fuck was going on here?

Out of the corner of her eye, Vi saw Caitlyn freeze, as if suddenly chilled by a concussive shot. Kirramman. The mercenaries were supposedly after Sevika.

“How do you know her name?” Vi asked, voice hard. Caitlyn interjected before Deckard could answer:

“Who do you work for?”

Her squad leader’s voice was suddenly cold as ice. In response, the Turian paused. A long pause. One full of potential decision making, of weighing up possible choices. Vi felt herself tense. This was not the actions of an untrained desperate. This was someone who knew how to carry himself while under capture.

Then, Deckard lowered his claws, relaxing on his knees. He seemed to smirk up at Caitlyn, as if knowing that it didn’t matter that he was no longer playing the part of ‘terrified novice gang member’.

“It doesn’t matter. Either you’ll kill me…” one shoulder shrugged up, eyes firmly on Caitlyn. “Or you won’t. Better than what waits for me if I disobey orders.”

“Who’s orders, Turian?” Sevika snarled, pointing her gun at his head, roughly pushing the barrel into the side of his fringe. “Give us names.”

“Or what?” The reply was low. “I talk, they shoot me, and I die. I shut up, you shoot me, and I die. Nothing in it for me.”

“We can offer protection.” Mel said, voice serious as she knelt to Deckard’s level, gently moving Sevika’s gun away with a light touch. “Bring you with us. Help get you back to the Hierarchy.”

Deckard scoffed, turning his head to face Mel, a strange tightness to his mandibles.

“I’m a deserter. The Hierarchy isn’t exactly the safest place for me. Plus…”

His eyes slid back to Caitlyn.

“I have my orders. We know all about obeying those, don’t we?”

Again, Caitlyn stiffened, what remaining colour draining from her face. Vi had heard enough. Growling, she roughly charged forwards, grabbing Deckard by his chest piece and, using a touch of charge, slammed him into a nearby storage container with one strong hand, the other closing into a fist crackling with biotic energy.

“Enough fuckin’ games, Deck,” she growled. “Who the fuck knows we’re with Sevika?”

“Someone who is curious why a disgraced alliance turncoat and failed C-Sec was worth the attention of a Noxian Asari Commando running some sort of scheme involving black market trades on Omega.”

Vi wrenched him back before slamming him into the steel wall again.

“How the fuck do you know any of this?”

Deckard chuckled roughly, a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth. Clearly, the repeated impacts had done something to him. Before he could answer, through the pounding of adrenaline in her ears, Vi heard doors opening and boots on steel. Turning her head, she noticed a tall light grey-green Turian with deep red markings in smart grey formal attire surrounded by well-armed and outfitted guards in light grey and black armour standing in the open double doors that led to the inner parts of the station. Counting quickly, she realised these were well trained and armed station guards, who far outnumbered and out positioned the four of them as they fanned out through the dock, weapons ready.

“Might want to go easy on him, Vi,” the Turian in the doorway said lightly. “As I recall, I’m not paying for the trouble of keeping prisoners.”

Turning his attention to Deckard, one mandible rose in a smirk.

“Get outta here, kid. Consider this the one mercy I’m willing to offer. Else, we’ll shoot you and the problem will be solved. Hard way, easy way, it’s up to you.”

“Vern, you idiot,” Sevika snarled, through gritted teeth. “This asshole has answers and-”

“Look at me, Sevika,” The Turian interrupted, opening his arms wide, head cocked to the side. “Does this seem like I care? Because I don’t. You are being paid to get rid of this scum so we can reopen this dock. I’ve got freighters waiting and from what I hear, negotiations to do with your team about repairing that rust bucket you call a ship.”

Vi paused, looking to Caitlyn for orders. The squad leader sighed and made a slight gesture with a hand. Reluctantly, she let Deckard go. Without a word, the young Turian scurried to a shuttle. With one last look over his shoulder at his discarded weapon, he entered and closed the door. The shuttle disembarked shortly after, dropping from the dock with ease.

“You do realise you just cost us a lead in a very important investigation, Mr Morgavin.” Mel’s tone was only mildly chiding.

“Well, aren’t you a delightfully sassy Asari to undermine me on my own station?” Vern replied as he stepped further into the docking area. “Again, let me repeat myself, just in case you’re deaf as well as stupid: I. Don’t. Care. I asked Sevika to help and she did. Now we can take stock of her delivery, open the dock to others, negotiate repairs, and perhaps figure out just how much of that bonus you’re owed.”

Vi swore she could feel the rage coiling off of Sevika. Mel was almost meeting her halfway, appearing to only be held back by years of Asari Diplomacy Training. And Caitlyn…

Caitlyn appeared lost in thought, fingers and thumb absentmindedly rubbing together, a tic of sorts. Vi blinked in surprise.

Had Caitlyn not heard any of the bullshit Vern was spouting?

Slowly she walked over and touched the palm of Caitlyn hand.

“You ok, Cupcake?” she asked, softly.

Caitlyn’s eyes looked unfocussed as they snapped to her face. Then, ever so slowly, they thawed, the almost electric blue appearing to shift as information that was being sorted into different categories appeared to finally hit the sides.

“How did he know my name?” Caitlyn muttered under her breath. “The contract was on Sevika. He could only know if…”

Those eyes flicked to Vi’s, suddenly hard and raw.

“We need to talk to Jayce. Someone is intercepting our communications.”

Chapter Text

Caitlyn stared unblinkingly at the heavy reinforced door that led to Vern’s office. The soundproofing on the enclosed space was impressive. She could barely hear the murmur of the raised voices as Sevika and Vern had a full and frank exchange of views. Through the frosted plastic window, she could see the vague silhouette of a wildly gesticulating figure pacing back and forth in front of the faint blob of what could possibly be a desk. Clearly, Vern had gotten under Sevika’s carapace. The hope that Sevika was keeping her cool was fading fast and with it, the feeling that they had done a good job with their first combat engagement.

After contacting Jayce to confirm the all-clear, Caitlyn and her squad were left waiting in the reception area of the station management ward. Caitlyn was leaning on the wall with her arms folded. Vi sat opposite her in one of the stylishly militaristic chairs, one leg jiggling. Caitlyn couldn’t tell if it was in irritation or boredom, but it was weirdly rhythmic and a little soothing in a bizarre way. Mel was next to the mercenary, a far more relaxed presence apart from her fingers drumming on the arm of her own seat. All of them were still in their combat loadout, having not had time to return to the Sinestrus between the firefight and Vern’s insistence on resolving payment as soon as possible. Sevika had asked them to accompany her to her ‘discussion’ with Vern regarding the bonus, his actions towards Deckard, and how long they were permitted use of the station’s drydock, plus what it would cost them all. Caitlyn suspected this tactic was aimed to give her some back-up should Vern’s cutthroat ways irritate her into violence. Despite this, Sevika was also relying on the payment for the shipment as well as the bonus for repairs, so it wasn’t like she could just shoot the smarmy Turian and be done with it. Perhaps it was also born of paranoia, of liking to have someone at her back just in case something went sideways. Caitlyn could sympathise. It made sense when in a place where you weren’t sure there was hostility or not.

Weirdly, the waiting for an outcome had allowed Caitlyn to partition her thoughts a little more. She hated OpSec leaks, especially ones that could be either a technical bug or a spy in their ranks. Given her investigation of the dossiers from Mel, she did have her suspicions as to the source of the information being probably something more electronic and less personnel-based. The files about the crew were clear; the Sinestrus was a family. A spy in the ship's ranks was highly unlikely, especially with the personal connections between all the crew. Sevika honed her team into a close-knit interconnected relationship web and recruitment was a highly unusual and long-term process, flavoured by Sevika’s paranoia and cynicism. Furthermore, Caitlyn’s own team of specialists had no real drive or vested interest in publicising their positions. Between Vi’s escape, Mel’s issues with the Noxian Republic and Viktor’s pilgrimage obligations, none of the unknown or suspicious members of the team had any incentive to betray any information. Even Jayce understood the meaning of operative security and had the cover story already in place surrounding being hired to upgrade the Frigate, with Heim clearly more focussed on his quest to rebuild Krogan Culture over any financial gain to be had by giving up intel.

No, this had to be technical, a bug or some sort of transmitter… Which meant whatever was listening to them was installed the last time the ship was serviced. Sevika hadn’t mentioned anything pre-boarding about any repairs performed on the Citadel, although there was a possibility of a retrofit occurring prior to her recruitment. Then again, the Turian had to have met Mel somewhere, and that alone carried an extra possibility of unknown infiltration. Caitlyn’s inquisitiveness got the better of her, and she broke the silence:

“Mel?”

“Thank the Goddess, someone finally said something.” The reply was relieved. “Even my infinite patience was being tested.”

Caitlyn heard Vi snort in amusement, still jiggling her knee absentmindedly, although those attractive grey eyes were now focussed on her. A jolt rippled down her spine, butterflies in her stomach and Caitlyn willed herself to be still. Vi could give her full attention like no one else, and it was rattling to be in the firing line of such a forceful gaze. Caitlyn was grateful she had managed to work on keeping her blush below collar level. Obviously, her practice was paying off.

Clearing her throat, she commented:

“While I’m glad to be of service, I have a rather important question.”

Mel suddenly looked curious, golden face marks furrowing around her eyes as she leaned forwards. She inclined her head, showing she was paying attention. Caitlyn continued her thoughts aloud:

“Where did you hire Sevika? It wasn’t the Citadel, was it?”

The Asari shook her head slowly.

“No, I had gotten her contact from one of my networks and met up with her at a refuelling station in the Silean System. She had been running some supplies to the Asari mines out there and was refuelling at one of the stations.”

Caitlyn felt her heartbeat punch in her chest from the inside. Refuelling stations sometimes but not always had dry docks. A mining system would be more likely to have such resourcing, however, as the supply line between mining, refining and distribution was very profitable for any company or government. Ships on that supply line had to be kept mechanically sound. 

“Was Sevika getting any servicing done to the Sinestrus while she was there?”

Mel paused. The quietness grew uncomfortable.

“Yes. The Sinestrus needed a replacement communication relay junction,” Mel responded. “Sevika was forced to cheap out as the Asari Engineers were not kind in their negotiations, so she refitted it with a used one from…”

A flash of realisation danced across her face, before fading to a vague sense of annoyance and disgust.

“From a Volus on a supply run between Omega and Noxus. I recall he was quite insistent that she only had one option for the replacement, especially given the specific class of the Sinestrus as a frigate. I found it strange at the time but…”

Vi was almost as quick on the uptake as Caitlyn was. She suddenly stiffened in her seat.

“Goddamn it,” the mercenary muttered. “We’ve been made before we’d even began?”

“It looks like it,” Caitlyn said, voice low. Ignoring the glance that Mel and Vi exchanged, she began to pace. Although resolving the issue wouldn’t be too problematic while they fixed the power problems, the question of who was listening was now the main concern.

“Omega or Noxus? That’s the million credit question,” she muttered to herself, thumbs and fingers rubbing together as she thought. “Who would be the most interested in our movements?”

“That is a leap,” Mel interrupted. “Information is worth anything to the highest bidder. We do not know for sure. It could be the Shadow Broker or…”

Mel’s voice faded into the white noise as her mind flicked to Deckard’s pointed comments about her service. There was something in his tone, in the way that his eyes flashed mockingly that sat ill with her. She had originally put her unease down to the impact of killing without a sense of duty – something she had decided swiftly that she would have to unpack later – but right now, it pointed to someone who could know of her history. How much of it was extrapolated from her military record and how much was boots on the ground remained to be seen.

“I have my orders. We know all about obeying those, don’t we?”

The comment ricocheted as she recalled it, haunting the black spot of memories inside her head. Her boots slid to a stop. She clamped down on it, her sense of control immediately breaking the circuit of that thinking with cold efficiency. No. She would not be unbalanced by snide manipulation. She closed her eyes automatically, focussing her will on freezing out the cycle of anxiety that was slowly building. With ruthless proficiency, she wrapped mental fingers around all the possibilities past, present and future and squeezed, fighting to keep her actual hands from shaking.  A gaping maw seemed to open inside her mind, slowly growing, sucking every thought down. Desperately she forced icy control in response. She would not fall in, could not. She wasn’t mindlessly following orders. She wasn’t just a cog in someone else’s war.

This was hers. This was her chance to prove them all wrong. She wasn’t going to lose it to her own failures.

Her nose and lips felt numb as her mind fought back, latching onto the sensation of a rifle butt slamming into her shoulder as her shots tore holes in the heads of a Salarian, a Human, a Vorcha. She could smell the smoke of a heatsink popping, could almost see the explosion of blood of different colours against the inside of her skull. It was vivid and shaky at the same time, the figures shifting between a docking bay and the trap-laced entrance to Topside. The popping of the heatsink in her mind began to turn into the exploding of generators…

NO.

Something nudged her side, gently. In shock, she opened her eyes and whirled on the spot, to see that warm grey gaze locking right onto her face with an accuracy that any marksman would dream of. Vi had approached her, clearly concerned by her sudden freezing. She didn’t know how long she had been out. All she knew was that the mercenary was tentatively and gently reaching up to hold her hands, stilling her movements. They were both wearing combat gloves and gauntlets, but Caitlyn felt a comforting warmth spread up her arms and flood her chest, pushing her consciousness back into her body. She immediately froze in place, swallowing down a nervous gasp. Heat rose in her cheeks. She knew Mel was watching, probably with far too much interest in Caitlyn’s responses for her liking, but she couldn’t look away from the earnest and open expression on Vi’s face.

“Hey.” Vi’s voice was soft. “You ok? You just… went somewhere.”

The nervousness turned to mortification. Oh god she hadn’t…

“I know this was your first time not doing this kind of thing as a job of sorts,” Vi continued, voice kind and understanding. “It’s enough to rattle anyone. But you did right. We caught a leak.”

“What of the others?” Caitlyn found herself saying through thick-feeling lips. “Deckard had a mandate but…”

“So did the rest of those idiots, just a slightly different one.” Vi’s husky voice was as gentle as Caitlyn had ever heard it. “Else they wouldn’t have fuckin’ rocked up. And we warned them. All three of us. You can’t out-negotiate greed.”

Caitlyn exhaled. The mercenary continued:

“As for Deckard? Way, I see it, it’s better we figure out we’re being watched now and deal with it rather than having it bite us in the ass later.”

“Well said,” Mel concurred, standing. “As I was saying, we do not actually know who has the intervening code for that compromised communication relay junction. It could be any interested party, from the Shadow Broker to Blood Pack to Eclipse...”

“I don’t like it,” Caitlyn muttered, ignoring how Vi’s thumbs were rubbing soothing circles the back of her gloves. “Deckard was focussed on unsettling me. It checks out that it’s someone who knows what I’ve done.”

“It could also be someone who knows you are the most susceptible to emotional manipulation of us all,” the Asari replied bluntly.

“Hey!” Vi protested on Caitlyn’s behalf, grey gaze hardening as she turned to glare at Mel. “She’s not weak, you know.”

Caitlyn fought the urge to bite her lip. Wow. Ok. That wasn’t supposed to be that hot.

“I am not saying she is weak,” came the reply. “I am merely observing that, regarding this squad, Caitlyn has the least involvement operating outside of a dedicated command hierarchy. That lack of experience does make her vulnerable to someone playing on that lack of structure.”

The side of the Asari’s mouth turned up in a rueful smirk as she continued.

“If I was trying to unbalance this team, it is what I would do.”

Caitlyn shot a flat, aggravated stare at Mel.

“That’s unkind.”

“But not untrue. Take out the strategic thinker, the rest fall. It is fundamental counterplay.”

There was a pause. Vi’s thumbs had stilled on the back of Caitlyn’s gloves. She missed the movement. She could see the cogs turning in Vi’s head as she considered this new perspective. Vi then turned and looked at Caitlyn quizzically. For some reason Caitlyn understood her immediately. She nodded her thanks and Vi let go of her hands slowly, almost reluctantly if Caitlyn squinted her perception hard enough.

Really, any excuse to touch me?

That thought was getting stuffed into a locker inside her mind, with its naughty books as company. Caitlyn cleared her throat and turned to Mel.

“While I don’t necessarily like my weakness being pointed out, I absolutely acknowledge that in this case, it’s probably correct. We don’t know who is listening. So, we need to stop them from continuing to do so and adapt our deployment and strategies.”

Mel nodded in response. Caitlyn felt Vi’s eyes on her. She couldn’t tell if it was admiration or anticipation. Either was fine with her.

“First step is to add a new communication relay junction to our requisitions and repairs list here. Then, we need to make haste to Omega. As I recall, this was Sevika’s last outstanding cargo run. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can take control of the narrative.”

Almost as if she had been summoned, the door to Vern’s office opened and the Turian Captain stormed out. Caitlyn winced as she took in the Turian’s expression. Obviously, the discussion had not gone entirely in her favour.

“That piece of shit…” Sevika hissed. “Doing us out of some of our bonus percent because we left four people alive.”

Caitlyn felt her stomach swoop. She opened her mouth to protest, but Sevika beat her to it:

“Oh, shut up, Kirramman, it’s fine, you did the right thing. Turns out that Vern knew Deckard was a fucking snake.”

Her captain paused, taking a deep, angry breath, before continuing:

“Deckard was informing him of the movements of the desperate and wasteful.”

The turian then growled, scratching a mandible in irritation. Her prosthetic claw was clenched into a fist, a sign Caitlyn took as an expression of her annoyance, not a violent warning.

“That whole show was a cover to allow Deckard passage while making sure we cleansed the last outliers of the rampaging human trafficking shitstains who used to run this joint off this station,” Sevika continued, grumbling. “The three who left early were just external talent, hired by Heenot. Seems like they were slightly smarter than your average dumbass.”

Caitlyn let the tension in her body go, biting back the relieved sigh. At the least they’d taken care of some actual monsters, not just people doing a job. Still, she had to adjust to this world, where there was more than just a global command. Sevika, irate as she was, wasn’t quite finished though:

“Vern might be a shifty bastard, but Deckard is an absolute garbage Turian. I hate people who play both sides.”

“Guess you’re not a fan of her,” Vi quipped, gesturing to Mel with a lazy cocking of her head. Caitlyn fought back a snort of amusement as Mel’s face dropped for a second before smoothing back over into her normal serene expression. Surprisingly though, Sevika’s response was more telling. She gave a minute pause, her prosthetic unclenching, her scratching stilling.

“Well, I didn’t mean it like that,” she muttered, almost as an apology to Mel. Caitlyn felt her eyebrows rise.

Thank God for that anti-fraternisation policy, hey?

 “No offence taken,” Mel said with a kind smile. “We were just considering what facts we have learned and how to best apply them. Caitlyn has some thoughts.”

She did? Immediately it was a jolt of adrenaline. She did have thoughts. She had to. She was the leader. Hurriedly, Caitlyn pulled herself together. The presence of Vi had been a welcoming balm to what had seemed to be growing into an uncontrolled flashback. All that being said, it had also caused her to lose focus. With a deep breath, Caitlyn began her pseudo briefing to the captain.

“We need to replace the communication relay junction you bought while in Silean,” she explained. “Someone is using it to listen into all our communications, encrypted or otherwise.”

Sevika’s cursing was an impressive mix of Turian, Human, Krogan and… was that Vorcha? Caitlyn was unaware that Turian larynxs could replicate that kind of a hiss. Perhaps it was a palate thing?

“I knew that replacement was a bad idea,” Sevika finally said once she’d gotten it out of her system. “I’m going to murder Gert and Eve.”

“It’s not their fault,” Caitlyn continued. “I suspect it was designed with a three-way transmission. It would be almost impossible to spot the operational security breach without being a Jayce or Heim level of engineering genius.”

 “If we’ve been so operationally lax for that long, how many other people have been listening in?” Sevika wanted to know, shoulders tense. “I don’t like having leaks.”

“That is the main issue,” Caitlyn responded, moving towards the door with a beckoning motion. “We have no firm leads on who exactly is listening. While Omega and Noxus were the main stops Mel told me the supplier was going between, it could have come from any scrapyard anywhere.”

“Fuckin’ Volus,” Sevika grumbled, following Caitlyn. “Costing me both more credits and some of my sanity. God, I feel like my ship has contracted some kind of STD.”

Vi laughed at that, moving up to walk next to Caitlyn. She felt like the mercenary was hovering slightly, almost just on the edge of her personal space. Despite herself, she appreciated the concern and physical support. Vi truly did have a solid gold heart and a streak of empathy a mile wide. Caitlyn wondered how she reconciled that with her reputation as a hard swinging badass willing to do most things for the right fee. Compartmentalisation had to only go so far, right?

“You know how they are, Sevika,” Vi commented dryly, unaware of Caitlyn’s quiet analysis of her. “They don’t check this kinda shit if they need to make a cred or two. Not saying the oversight is on you but y’know…”

“I know, I know…” Was the Turian whining? “I just wanted to get us out of the Silean System before the Asari could overcharge us into oblivion.”

“That one is absolutely your fault,” Mel joined in, walking up to fall into step with Sevika. “You know as well as I do that the Asari of that system are utterly ruthless in their dealings. You could have taken my advice and limped to something nearby.”

“Yeah, ok, rub it in.”

“Anytime.”

There was a pause, before Caitlyn felt herself laugh out loud, with Vi joining in. Refusing to dignify any of them with a response, the Turian opening the omnitool on her prosthetic. She tapped away, before almost reluctantly closing the interface.

“I’ve added a brand-new communication relay junction to the requisition and repair mandate while we’re here,” she growled. “Hopefully that’ll keep the rest of you off my ba-Shut the fuck up, Vi.”

“I didn’t say anything.” The mercenary was jovial. Caitlyn caught the glimpse of that same cocky, cheeky smirk out of the corner of her eye. She smiled quietly to herself. Clearly, the both of them had seen the same opportunity to continue the mockery of Sevika’s apparent attraction to Mel, but only one of them was brave enough to make the comment and it wasn’t going to be Caitlyn. A squad leader had to maintain some sort of decorum.

“You didn’t have to.” Sevika was firm. “Just shut up.”

“Aye aye, captain.”

Whatever Sevika was going to do in response was cut off by Mel, who, Caitlyn observed out of the corner of her eye, placed a soothing hand on the Turian’s forearm.

“Let them be, Sevika,” Mel almost purred. “They are dealing with their own unique relationship dynamic. It has been really quite enjoyable to watch them dance around each other.”

Ooft, that one hit.

Vi obviously felt the impact too but had a very different response. While Caitlyn quickly shored her body language up to prevent discovery, the look Vi shot her was positively brutal. A scalding, quick flash of desire with a tight jaw and a swallow that looked to be more dry than wet. Fingers twitched inside a sharply angular armoured glove, as if to reach for Caitlyn’s hand again. It was possible the most hunger Caitlyn had seen out of the mercenary.

And God it was hot. So hot. It burned through her body, leaving vapours of want. Caitlyn immediately reverted to focusing her mind on the task ahead of her. Now was not the time to get distracted, especially on Gospeck Station.

“So,” Caitlyn changed tactics casually. “How bad was the damage to your total?”

Sevika grunted reluctantly.

“Not nearly as bad as it could be,” she admitted. “We met the deadline for our cargo delivery which clears us to fully dedicate to your mission while netting a tidy profit. But the bonus was not nearly as substantial as I had predicted.”

“Sounds like Vern drives a hard bargain.” Vi said. For once, she was maintaining an even, almost collegial tone. Perhaps Mel’s comment had gotten to her? Caitlyn found herself missing the banter.

“The only thing Vern drives is his head up his own ass,” Sevika growled dismissively. “It was my fault – I didn’t lock in a minimum bonus based on performance, expecting our previous good faith to ensure he wouldn’t screw me.”

“Sevika!” Mel was shocked. “How amateur of you.”

“Tell me about it. I haven’t been had that badly over a barrel in years.”

She paused, looking bright eyed at Caitlyn. The armoured plates that made up her face spread into a wicked grin.

“Part of me is hoping that we can find something he’s done wrong so I can shoot him. Or maybe Caitlyn will do the honours. You’re a savage shot, Kirramman.”

Caitlyn allowed herself a smile.

“I’ve had plenty of practice.”

“It’s one thing to watch you in the range, and another thing to see it in the field.” The Turian continued. “You’re like some kind of ghost. But with a really keen eye and a fuckin’ big gun.”

Caitlyn felt herself blush. While she was still uneasy about the deaths, it was nice to know that she hadn’t missed a step during her time away from her favoured combat position. It was a strange feeling in her chest, a mix of pride at her ability and horror at how… easy it had felt.

Perhaps it’s because it was only tangential to her main objectives on the mission, but the fact Caitlyn didn’t even need to break a sweat and felt nothing but pure focus during action made her begin to doubt her own sense of self. She knew she wasn’t a good person. No good person has done what she had done. But she didn’t think she was necessarily that cold when she was killing outside of a military structure.

Turns out, it was almost easier. That thought alone caused her defences to shake. She felt a nudge in her ribs and glanced over at Vi, who was smiling at her, eyes shining.

“Sevika hates it when people outperform her,” The comment was a pleasing mix of warm and cheeky. “You really should take the compliment.”

“I don’t really know how to deal with killing for profit,” Caitlyn confessed.

“For profit?” Vi’s eyebrows raised. “You nuked people who preyed on those with no money or power and the only person who got paid is Sevika. Go easy on yourself, Cupcake. Trust me, I’ll tell you when something stinks of killing for credits.”

Another warm feeling spread through Caitlyn as she returned Vi’s smile.

“So, you’re offering to be my moral guide?”

She was pleasantly surprised by Vi’s rough laugh in response.

“Nah, just not willing to let you get dirtier than you’re willing,” the mercenary riposted with a scandalous wink.

Caitlyn bit the inside of her cheek, feeling tips of her ears go red as she turned away. She really needed to get a grip on herself, but it was hard when there was the equivalent of lesbian catnip right there. Losing her cool benefited no one, even if the urge to pin Vi to the nearest surface and make out with her messily did have a certain appeal to it.

Instead of allowing herself to truly fantasise where such actions would lead, Caitlyn cleared her throat and squared her shoulders.

“Come on,” she said to her squad. “Sooner we get the Sinestrus sorted, the sooner we can make our way to Omega.”

Chapter Text

With one final click, Vi shut her equipment locker in the Sinestrus’s cargo hold and set it to a deep decontamination cycle. Caitlyn had stood everyone down when they returned to the ship, before immediately requesting to accompany Jayce, Heim and Viktor to Engineering to inspect the communication relay junction before they moved to the drydock for repairs. While the fact she wasn’t allowed on the engineering floor did still smart a little, Vi had noticed the gleam in Caitlyn’s eye, which she took to mean a genuine interest in what exactly was going on, an interest that was absolutely not in Vi’s wheelhouse. Instead, she made her way to the hanger and took the time to disarm and check over the equipment she had used in their first combat outing.

Everything was fine. She did need to tighten one webbing strap on her thigh as it was hanging a little loose, but for such a simple adjustment, she didn’t need Jayce’s help. Which was a good thing, as he was also positively frothing to get deep into the engine refit he had planned. All of this technical shit had left Vi at a bit of a loose end but there was absolutely work to be done. For starters, she needed to change out from her compression wear. While the firefight hadn’t been too stressing, she had worked up a bit of a sweat, and she was pretty sure there might be a spot of blood or two on her armoured pants. Then there were the mandatory post-mission beers and maybe grabbing a feed from the mess. It was important. She had to make sure she was fed, watered and decompressed before the next engagement.

Making her way to the elevator, she nodded to Benzo as she passed. The Elcor didn’t respond, but that was to be expected. Elcor nods took a million years and Vi really could do with that shower. Entering the elevator, she pressed the button for the mess level and leaned back against the wall, hands in pockets, mentally untangling the last knots of mission outcomes. As a mercenary, she was used to doing her own form of a debrief, knowing that her mental health worked far better when she allowed herself to dissect her actions.

Vi knew better than to get it twisted – she liked combat, liked the adrenaline of fighting, of channelling her physical and biotic energy in close quarters. But she also knew she wasn’t inherently bloodthirsty. The physical satisfaction aside, each life or maiming she dealt out had to be mentally accounted for and compartmentalised. Every decision and consequence strategized to the best of her ability. And if it was out of her control…

Well, she still struggled with letting go. But practice made perfect.

The lift suddenly stopped at engineering and, to Vi’s surprise, Caitlyn entered. The squad captain was still in her combat loadout, a thunderous expression on her face. Vi’s eyes met hers, suddenly taken aback by the hard, frustrated look and the tightness of her jaw. Caitlyn looked almost unsettled, a furrow in her brow that could be either irritation or frustration.

“Take out your comms piercings,” Caitlyn said by way of greeting, biting the words through downturned lips. Vi felt her eyebrow raise.

“Wow, ok, boss,” Vi responded. “Hey to you too.”

Despite Caitlyn’s sudden attitude, Vi reached up and easily popped off the top two piercings with the white LEDs from her ear, handing them to Caitlyn. Immediately, Caitlyn crushed both devices under a heavy armoured boot. Vi felt a surge of anger.

“Hey!” she protested. “Those were custom, Cupcake. Cartilage and bone transmission all built in, what gives?”

“Bill me,” came the weary response. “Better that I owe you a new communicator than we continue to be compromised.”

Vi folded her arms across her chest, unimpressed with the flat effect of Caitlyn’s voice. Wow way to explain yourself, asshat.

“You could’ve put them in a faraday pouch or something,” she said, annoyed. “I might be your hireling, but my shit isn’t yours to destroy.”

Caitlyn glared at her for a moment. Vi returned the same energy by squaring her shoulders and pushing herself off the wall. The air grew thick, tight with tension. Vi couldn’t help but notice a shift in the tightness of that sloping jawline, the determination in her eyes, the way in which she held herself stiffly. Those long legs were planted, weight low to the ground, a glowering tightness to her stance that could be fight or flight. There was a sense of… distrust? Fury? Then, Caitlyn sighed, sagging slightly, breaking eye contact.

“OpSec is a priority,” the tall sniper explained. “We found the leak but on preliminary analysis, it has compromised all networked remote communication devices. There was a built-in eavesdropper package that uploaded itself to the firmware of any comms unit that connected to it, up to and including custom commlinks.”

She turned her head to the side, showing Vi that Caitlyn too was missing the gold hoop that was so often looped over her ear.

“We will have to replace every single communication device, including my own.”

Vi exhaled through her nose. So, this wasn’t egotistical leader bullshit. Just a weary, exhausted woman trying to find yet another solution to another fucking problem.

“Sound expensive.”

“Incredibly so.” This time, Caitlyn’s voice carried a tinge of regret. “I have already broken the news to Jayce, Viktor and Heim. I am about to rope Sevika and Mel in as well.”

“Oh man,” Vi commented, leaning back against the elevator wall. “Best wishes. Sevika is gonna lose her shit.”

Caitlyn’s posture shifted as she too slumped, looking down at her boots, hands braced on the handrail of the elevator cabin. Vi fought off the urge to step to her, to put herself within a breath of the taller woman. Now wasn’t the time for such fantasies, as much as the thought of kissing the frustration away seemed tempting.

“I know.” Caitlyn didn’t seem to notice the thirst. “And I don’t know how we’re going to ensure such a purchase is completely bombproof. Jayce has offered to cover the costs but…”

Vi immediately cottoned on.

“Shit,  if he does that directly, he’s gonna make it clear to anyone paying attention that whatever we’re doing has deep pockets, right, which means we have something to hide,” Vi finished, with dawning realisation. “That further fucks our OpSec. Damn, Cait, that fuckin’ sucks.”

“You’re telling me,” Caitlyn finally gave her a loose smile which made Vi’s stomach turn into a swarm of butterflies. “We need to figure out how to launder that money into the pockets of someone who has no incentive to betray us to rebuild our infrastructure, while we begin the search for the artefact without personal communicators.”

She watched the taller woman swallow bitterly, face returning to the same pressured mask, eyebrows furrowing.

“It’s a fucking mess that goes far beyond replacing one part of a ship,” Caitlyn continued. “We can complete the communication relay junction repair here in the drydock, but we’ll need a solution to resourcing the additional replacement of all the personnel comms infrastructure without exposing Jayce’s cover story or compromising Mel’s current contacts.”

Vi’s stomach dropped. The sniper looked both exhausted and anxious. No wonder she had been so business-forward when she entered. The pressure of leadership aside, Caitlyn was mulling everything over in her mind and it didn’t seem like she could come up with a solution without compromising operations further. What a hellscape to be in.

As the elevator crawled, Vi’s brain kicked in. There was a solution to this that would cost them nothing but selling it to Caitlyn was one thing. And even if the boss accepted, it would mean losing a major advantage in her network and maybe even going into the red with someone she’d rather not. In spite of that risk, Vi couldn’t stand seeing Caitlyn looking so dejected. It was decided. She’d do what she needed to do to make sure that this plan went back on the rails.

Hell, it’s what she was hired for, right?

The elevator opened to the crew quarters and Vi took the initiative, moving quickly. Caitlyn’s eyebrows rose as Vi approached with a smirk, before the mercenary reached out and grabbed her hand.

“C’mon. You need a drink before you say shit to Sevika.”

“Vi!” Caitlyn protested verbally, although to Vi’s delight she didn’t fight her physically. While she still wore her gloves, Vi liked the sensation of that long-fingered hand in hers, and she knew Caitlyn was a demon when it came to close quarters grappling, so the fact she wasn't choked out and dead bode well.

A flash of memory of that long lithe body above her hit Vi like a rocket, but she shoved it deep down. Now was not the time to think about that, especially with what she was cooking up.

“Boss, trust me, you and I have a beer and a chat, and we’ll figure out a solution to the issue.” Vi kept talking as she pulled Caitlyn towards her quarters. “Don’t worry, this is a patented Vi problem-solving strategy, approved by countless clients across the galaxies.”

The door opened for her, recognising her bio signature. She heard Caitlyn’s protests fall short as the squad leader took in the luxury quarters, blue eyes suddenly wide.

“Vi, seriously, this is what you negotiated out of Sevika? No wonder she’s perpetually pissed at you.”

With just the right balance of strong and gentle, Vi shoved Caitlyn onto the comfortable soft leather couch and made her way to the mini fridge in the bar.

“Yeah but tell me it’s not worth it,” she rebutted over her shoulder as she crouched down to open the fridge door.

A small chuckle reached Vi’s ears as the door to her quarters closed and oh boy that was a terrible idea. Looking back, Vi saw Caitlyn reclining back into the soft leather cushions with a sigh, shoulders lowering, posture a strange combination of ready and relaxed and that alone was the sexiest thing VI had ever seen. It only got worse as Caitlyn shucked her gloves and unclipped her visor from her face with a small, relieved smile. Vi’s throat went dry. Caitlyn was in almost full battle loadout, but in Vi’s eyes, it could be lingerie. The perfect balance of idiosyncrasy, well-mannered but casual, seemed to be Vi’s absolute lesbian weakness.

And it immediately got worse because the thought of Caitlyn clad in lace and silk was a dangerous gnat floating around Vi’s imagination that she desperately tried to swat at to not much success.

As she opened the fridge, she took a moment to let the cool air onto her face and neck. Thank fuck Caitlyn couldn’t read minds.

“Sometimes, I need to know when I’m beaten,” Caitlyn confessed, shaking her hair out of the ponytail it had been in with a relieved sigh.

This innocent action caused Vi to almost die of a goddamn heart attack. Was the sniper actually trying to assassinate her? Fucking shit, no one should look that good disarming themselves. The sniper fixed her with electric blue eyes and smiled in a fashion that shouldn't have been salacious, but failed in the face of Vi's interior gay panic.

“You promised a drink and an idea?”

“Well, the drink is confirmed, the idea is coming,” Vi retorted, hiding the horniness behind being cheeky. She snagged two beers from the minifridge and popping the caps. “I’m just hoping you’re amenable to my kinda bullshit.”

She walked back over and offered one of the beers to Caitlyn, who took it in her long, slender hand. Clinking her bottle against Vis, she took a large gulp without a breaking eye contact. Vi fought from her knees buckling.

Oh sweet fucking Jesus, how can she even make drinking a beer seem hot?

While Caitlyn didn’t seem to notice the gay panic, she did unfortunately clock the surprise.

“Don’t be shocked, I’d be a poor commander if I couldn’t drink what my team did,” Caitlyn explained, a tight smile across her lips. “I learned that lesson the hard way.”

Vi nodded, swigging down a mouthful from her own bottle to wet a suddenly dry throat. Goddamn. Caitlyn took another swallow, her expression relaxing slightly. Perhaps the beer was working its magic?

“Do you have a way out of this financial snarl?” she asked, settling back into the couch. “You mentioned an idea incoming, and I hope you’re not leading me on here just to get me into your quarters.”

Vi took another slug of her beer, partially considering an answer, partially buying time because holy shit, Caitlyn was looking at her with that strange light in her eyes – the one that Vi couldn’t tell was attention or attraction. This whole thing had gotten an extra layer to it, one that Vi was not in control of. But hey, she was enjoying the ride at the least?

“Well, I do have a specific contact on Omega who owes me.” Vi moved to lean on the bar and took a long pull from her beer. Caitlyn’s eyebrow rose, her head tilting inquisitively.

“Who?”

“Aria.”

The beer bottle stopped halfway to Caitlyn’s lips as her eyes widened.

“Aria?” she repeated flatly.

“Yup.”

“You want to leverage Aria to launder the cash?”

Vi swallowed more of her beer down. Enough playtime. Here goes…

“No, I want to ask Aria to help us source the new comms stuff.”

Caitlyn exhaled slowly. Leaning forwards, she grabbed a coaster and put her beer down on the polished coffee table, before resting her elbows on her knees, clasping her hands together with a light clap. A smile tugged at the corner of those fucking incredibly kissable lips.

“Did I miss some part of the combat engagement where you took a blow to the head?” Caitlyn asked, voice carrying a note of teasing. “Clearly, you’re concussed and not thinking properly.”

Vi allowed herself a chuckle as she walked over to the viewport. Leaning against the wall next to it with her beer in hand, she took a deep breath, ready to pitch the concept:

“So, see, the thing about Aria is that if you stay in the black, she’s okay. I’ve built up a decent amount of favour with her, doing gigs at a discount, not asking for anything in return… It started as insurance, so that I could be based on Omega long term and not be bothered but became kind of a running joke between us. Like, she’ll make a comment about wishing she could hire me for cheap, I’ll keep reminding her that she’s already getting a sweet deal, yeah?”

She took a sip of her beer, before continuing:

“Aria likes me. She likes that I don’t ask for much and that when I do have to make a mess on her station, I give her the heads-up so it doesn’t interfere with her business. What this does mean is that I kinda… know what she’s involved in.”

Caitlyn’s eyebrows rose again. She reached for her beer and took a large mouthful, gesturing Vi to continue as she sank back. Vi felt herself smile, reaching up to scratch her neck, feeling the slight rise in the skin where her tattoo ink sat.

“Aria’s got connections in the new tech spaces. Especially new comms tech. She’s always making sure she has enough tech shit to stay one step ahead of the gangs and the hackers who might be listening in. With enough of a conversation, I’m sure we can figure out a deal.”

“How can we guarantee Aria won’t piggyback onto the personal communicators in the same way as this current OpSec violation?” Caitlyn asked, brow furrowed.

“Because we’ll have your guys and Sevika’s guys run a sweep on every single thing before they even get remotely within reach of anything sensitive.”

Caitlyn blinked.

“Won’t that just piss Aria off?”

“I’m known to be very charming when I need to be,” Vi smirked. “Plus, if I offer to wipe our debt clean and volunteer my time to do her a favour…”

“It would be in her best interests to provide what you’re asking,” the captain completed the thought, realisation dawning.

“It’s not a bad idea,” Vi continued. “You know whatever Aria comes up with will be bombproof. Probably far beyond what we had previously.”

“And there will be no trail of credits,” Caitlyn murmured, half to herself, turning her bottle around in those long-fingered hands. “The only person who would be a leak is Aria and she’s not liable to blab if she can hold it over our heads for something in return…”

Vi nodded.

“Exactly. It also gives us a reason to be on Omega with a pretty strong cover story –  After resigning or whatever, Mel’s looking for cash to supply Jayce with what he needs to retrofit the Sinestrus for a push into the black market, you’ve gone crooked, and I’ve been hired as protection for you both. We’re the perfect kind of crew for Aria to act as the fixer.”

“How do we explain Sevika? Isn’t she banned from Omega on pain of death by the Bloodpack?”

Vi shrugged with a smirk, moving towards her closet. The compression shirt was beginning to annoy her, and she knew she had a nice clean black t-shirt somewhere.

“Kicking ass always bolsters someone’s attitude,” she continued, putting her beer on the bedside table as she opened her wardrobe. “Plus, she doesn’t have to leave the ship if it’s in orbit. We take the shuttle, and she provides support. Would make sense to any mercenary or bounty hunter that Sevika would be happy to hang out on her ship while we do the dirty work and she gets paid.”

“Especially after the work we've done here,” Caitlyn commented, taking a sip of beer, eyes glued to Vi’s movements inquisitively. “A decent plan.”

Vi continued to flick through her clothing. She could almost feel Caitlyn’s eyes on her back, tracing where the compression shirt clung to her muscles. It was a thrilling sensation, to be locked in the gaze of a smokeshow hottie. There was an impulse rising, a way to push boundaries that Vi was finding difficult to resist. Sure, she didn’t know just how interested in her Caitlyn was, so yeah, she absolutely needed more data. Plus, it was only polite to give her a show. It was just… building morale, right? Pressure release. Whatever. She was gonna do it and see what happened. Damn the consequence.

Finding the black t-shirt she was looking for and with a cheeky smirk at Caitlyn, Vi turned around and pulled the compression gear over her head.

The tension in the air took on a whole new dimension. Vi kept her back to Caitlyn, turning the t-shirt over in her hands as if she was trying to figure out what was front and back. That feeling of being stared at intensified, sending a delightful throb through Vi’s stomach down to between her legs. Sure, she still wore a sports bra, but hey, she’d put work into her physique. She knew she looked good.

And then there was the tattoo.

A stretch of mechanical gears and levers that followed the flow of her body, black artwork that ran either side of her spine and spread out like wings before flowing down her shoulders and arms. It had been weeks under the needle, intercut with recovery and hydration but boy it had been worth it. Outpost Zaun was a fabrication factory, building key mechanical components for Alliance Infrastructure. The way she saw it, she was bringing a part of what remained with her everywhere she went.

Vi thought it looked hot. And by the slight gasp that Vi swore she’d heard as she pulled her compression shirt off, Caitlyn agreed. She allowed herself to bask in the tension for another second or two, before pulling the new clean top over her head and turning to see the result of her work…

Which was absolutely the worst decision she had made so far, because holy shit, what the fuck?

Caitlyn looked hungry. Her knuckles were white around her beer bottle, eyes burning, jaw tight but not angry. Her blue hair hung on either side of her face, messy as if she’d run a hand through it and let it fall. Her body seemed tightly wound, muscles ready to pounce. Her bottom lip was red, as if she’d bitten it. Vi fought against every single atom of her being to keep that same casual smirk. Inside, she burned to continue forwards, to mount Caitlyn, unclip the armour and run her hands around her shoulder blades, up into her hair as she pressed her lips to the snipers, hips grinding down.

The moment stretched. It wasn’t uncomfortable. No. It was wicked. Vi felt her fingers toy lightly with the hem of her shirt. Caitlyn took another, possibly too long, swallow from her bottle, staring unblinkingly at the mercenary, the same horribly decadent tension spread between them. Vi basked in it. Who was she to deny the attention? Caitlyn hadn’t cracked yet. What would make her crack now?

“You could’ve warned me.”

The comment wasn’t chiding. It was heated, low in the throat, Caitlyn’s eyes glowering at Vi, who shrugged casually, a shit-eating smirk on her face, casually flexing folded arms across her chest as she leaned against the now-closed wardrobe.

“What’s the issue, boss? I wanted to be comfortable.”

Caitlyn pursed her lips, before taking another sip of beer. She didn’t seem to have blinked yet, a sign that made the ache Vi felt worse. With a swallow, a small corner of the squad leader’s lip turned up, an intoxicating glance sent her way as Caitlyn settled back into the couch.

“I could have you written up for weakening my defences.”

Oh god, Vi was going to die.

“What is your workout routine, anyway?” Caitlyn continued, almost at a purr and Vi fought from her knees buckling. “Punching concrete and climbing walls?”

“Heavy weights, cardio, boxing and a little bit of bodyweight stuff,” Vi responded with the tone of someone full sending themselves, ignoring the sinful burn under her skin at the playful tone. “Everything a close combat specialist needs.”

“Mhm,” Caitlyn drained her bottle, putting it on the coffee table. “Cannot say I’m familiar with the regime. Must say, I appreciate the results.”

FUCK. That one cause a tsunami. Vi fought to keep herself still, swallowing down another dry throat. Caitlyn was staring at her with a deeply buried challenge, almost a starvation. There was an intensity and focus Vi had dreamed of but rarely seen. It was intoxicating. She pushed back against it, not knowing for sure if she was seeing something real.

Caitlyn suddenly froze, as if catching herself. She cleared her throat, and Vi could sense the retreat.

No, stop. Stay here with me. It’s ok. I want this as much as you do.

It was to no avail. A wall of the same professionalism cast itself across Caitlyn’s face as she sat upright, hands pulling her gloves back on. Vi felt the tension ebb away, back to the normal level of pseudo desire that they shared. It was incredibly frustrating. Had Caitlyn been honest in her desires? Or was this another push into exploration?

She really did need to figure out what Caitlyn liked sooner rather than later.

“You’ve got a good idea, Vi,” Caitlyn said, sliding her visor back above her ear, letting the HUD deploy. “I think we can make this work. I still need to clear it with Mel and Sevika though.”

“Yeah, for sure.” Was that disappointment she tasted in the air? “Do you need a follow up?”

There was another pause that was almost salacious. Caitlyn smiled tightly.

“No, no, I think we can iterate on from what you’ve offered. Thank you. I know you’re sacrificing a lot. Losing out leverage with Aria is a hell of a sacrifice.”

The sniper pushed herself off the couch and it could have been wishful thinking, but Vi could have sworn her knees buckle for a second before she dusted her hands off and stood tall.

“I should take this thinking to Sevika and Mel as soon as possible. The longer we’re without comms…”

“The worse shit gets, I get you,” Vi completed, deciding to show them both some mercy. “I’ll need to find some spare jewellery to keep my piercings open though.”

“I’ll add it to our requisitions.”

“You’re a babe, Cupcake.” Vi threw the comment out with a wink. She needed to regain some kind of control as much as her libido was in a confused spiral. “Already feeling naked without them.”

Well, that look spoke wonders. Caitlyn’s jaw tightened for a moment, before she walked over to place the empty beer bottle on the bar.

“Thanks for the drink,” she said, as she swept her hair back from her face with both hands. Vi found herself wondering why. Was appearance that important? “And the plan. I think we have a good starting point. I just need to check with Sevika if she’s happy to play the greedy but stupid cargo captain, and that Mel doesn’t mind throwing herself in with Aria. You know the Asari.”

“Yeah.” Vi kept her voice from shaking. Watching Caitlyn put herself together almost made her feel like she was falling apart.

As the tall drink of water Vi was thirsting for moved towards the door, she paused, before throwing Vi an inscrutable look over her shoulder.

“Are you sure this is the time to cash in with Aria?” Caitlyn asked, voice low, serious and sincere.

The question hung in the air like perfume. Vi inhaled. Caitlyn was right. This was a hell of a sacrifice. Was she really that into Caitlyn to sacrifice years of goodwill to make a path easy.

In the back of her mind, Vi felt the shifting of scales. Of memories and power and control. If she did this, if she sacrificed this…

She could be trusted. And being trusted meant things could be easier.

Shaking the ulterior motive away like a bad hangover, Vi sent Caitlyn a winning smile.

“Cupcake, I live to make your life easier. Think of it this way: if I fuck up, you can boot my ass off ship and it’ll be no big loss.”

Caitlyn snorted and even that was an attractive gesture to Vi.

“Yes. I can absolutely see that happening.” The captain pressed the exit button next to the door as she smirked. “I’ll let you know how the conversation goes. What will do you in the meantime?”

Vi reached for the bottle of beer on her bedside table and saluted Caitlyn.

“Celebrate our first mission together. If you wanna join me later…”

“I’ll see you in the mess.”

Caitlyn’s eyes betrayed a different desire and Vi fought from a visible shiver. The squad captain offered her mercy in terms of a less charged, yet more vulnerable smile. Vi just about died. What the fuck was she expected to do with any of that?

“See you, Vi.” Came the soft farewell.

“Yeah, see you Cupcake.”

The door slid closed and Vi downed her beer. Shit. That’s what she got from playing with fire.